Thomas Muller (pictured) won the Golden Boot for scoring the most goals in South Africa in the summer and, at the age of 20, was voted best young player of the tournament.

He scored five goals in six appearances as Germany finished in third place.

Another young German, golfer Martin Kaymer, won his first major championship - the US PGA Championship at Whistling Straits - at the age of 25.

He became the first German to win the event and only the second after Bernhard Langer to win a major championship.

Italy's Matteo Manassero became the youngest ever winner on the European Tour after his victory at the Castellon Masters in Spain in October.

At 17 years 188 days, he is one year and 25 days younger than previous record holder, Danny Lee.


South Africa's Louis Oosthuizen (pictured) won his first major event, taking the Claret Jug, at the Open Championship at St Andrews.

When he went into the tournament he was ranked just 54th in the world.

His four round score of 272 was the second lowest in St Andrews history.

Two French athletes are also contenders for nomination - Christophe Lemaitre, who at 20 won the 100 metres, 200m and 4x100m gold medals at the European Championships in Barcelona - the first sprinter ever to do this treble - and 21-year-old Teddy Tamgho, who is already the third best triple jumper of all time, after jumping 17.98 metres in June, which followed his gold medal in the World Indoor Championships in Doha in March.

Also in contention for nomination are the England Twenty/20 team which won the World Cup, their first global trophy in the 35-year history of limited-overs cricket.

The names of the six nominees for the Laureus World Breakthrough of the Year Award, as voted by the Laureus Media Selection Panel, will be announced in early January.

The eventual winner will be chosen from that list of nominees by the Laureus World Sports Academy - the ultimate sports jury, made up of 46 of the greatest sportsmen and sportswomen of all time - and will be unveiled during a televised awards ceremony in Abu Dhabi on February 7.

Laureus Academy members also vote for the Laureus World Sportsperson of the Year with a Disability and the Laureus World Action Sportsperson of the Year, with nominations made by specialist panels.


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