Warne in line for sporting Oscar

Shane Warne

ESTORIL - Shane Warne will be hoping to continue a five-year run of Australian winners at the Laureus World Sports Awards.

The cricketer is Australia's only nomination at this year's so-called Oscars of sport and will be planning to follow in the winning footsteps of Cathy Freeman, Layne Beachley and Louise Sauvage.

In fact Warne is already a Laureus winner, having shared a gong with his team-mates when the Australian cricket side were named world team of the year in 2002.
This time around Warne has been nominated for comeback of the year, an award previously won by the likes of Brazilian soccer player Ronaldo, US cyclist Lance Armstrong and tennis players Goran Ivanisevic of Croatia and American Jennifer Capriati.

He'll be hoping that his name is read out when the winners are announced at the glamorous awards night at the Casino Estoril in front of an audience of sporting legends and acting and singing celebrities.

Warne was nominated after his return to cricket after a 12-months drug ban for taking a banned diuretic ahead of the 2003 Cricket World Cup.

He returned to the Australian team in 2004 at the end of his suspension and became the first spinner to take 500 test wickets and went on to grab the world record for the highest number of test scalps.

Warne, who won't be in Estoril because of playing commitments with county side Hampshire, was surprised at his nomination.

"Shane would dearly love to be there this year because he said it was an absolutely sensational event the year he went when the Aussie team won," said his brother and manager Jason Warne.

"It [his nomination] caught him a bit out of left field.

"But it's a feather in his cap and he'll be over the moon if he's fortunate enough to win."

Strangely Warne is up against Australia's next opponent, the English cricket team, in the comeback of the year category, along with American golfer John Daly, Japanese judo star Tadahiro Nomura and British runner Paula Radcliffe.

However, the favourite is Italy's Alessandro Zanardi, who made a full return to motor racing after losing both legs in a crash.

Multiple Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong, swimmer Michael Phelps and Swiss tennis whiz Roger Federer are expected to battle out sportsman of the year for 2004; while Swedish golfer Annika Sorenstam and British runner Kelly Holmes are the favourites for sportswoman of the year.

World Series baseball winners the Boston Red Sox and the European football champions Greece are likely winners of the team of the year.

- AAP