Christian Eriksen & Lisandro Martinez win at 2023 Laureus World Sport Awards
Manchester United pair Christian Eriksen and Lisandro Martinez were among the prize winners at the 2023 Laureus World Sport Awards.
The Laureus ceremony has been held annually since 2000, recognising sportsmen and women around the world from all manner of sporting disciplines.
Eriksen was honoured with a particularly special prize – the Comeback of the Year award. Previous winners recognised for great sporting comeback stories have included Brazil legend Ronaldo, as well as Tiger Woods, Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Dan Carter and Kim Clijsters.
Eriksen suffered a life threatening cardiac arrest while in action for Denmark at Euro 2020. The midfielder collapsed on the pitch and immediately received emergency resuscitative medical care, before being transported to a nearby hospital, where he was confirmed as stable and awake.
The Dane was then fitted with an implantable cardioverter-defibrillator, a device which ultimately allowed him to resume his football career just six months later when he signed for Brentford on a short-term contract. Eriksen immediately proved he was still capable of playing at the highest level and re-established himself as one of the Premier League’s top creators.
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Last summer, he made the switch to United on a free transfer and has been a crucial part of the transition and development that new manager Erik ten Hag has overseen. The player also made his return to international football with Denmark in March 2022, less than a year after his collapse.
Meanwhile, Martinez won Team of the Year as a member of the Argentina squad that lifted the World Cup in Qatar at the end of 2022. The centre-back, who has been a revelation in a United shirt this season, featured in all but two of his country’s games – including 112 minutes of the quarter-final.
Argentina teammate Lionel Messi also won the individual Sportsman of the Year award.
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