Harper Nominated for USSA Athlete of the Year
12/7/2006 7:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Dec. 7, 2006
VOTE HARPER!
DAPHNE, Alabama - Maryland junior Laura Harper is in the running for the United States Sports Academy Athlete of the Year award, presented by USA Today and MSNBC.com. Harper is nominated after being selected the USSA's Athlete of the Month in April when she helped the women's basketball team capture the program's first-ever national title and was named the Final Four' Most Outstanding Player. A worldwide online balloting of fans, which ends December 25, will determine the winner.
The ballot will be located on a website hosted by the Academy and will be available through direct links from USATODAY.com Sports content and the sports pages of MSNBC.com. To submit your vote, please visit www.usatoday.com, www.msnbc.com or www.ussa.edu.
Academy Athlete of the Year ballot is the culmination of the Academy's yearlong Athlete of the Month program, which recognizes the accomplishments of men and women in any sport around the globe. The Academy's Athlete of the Month is selected by an international voting committee comprised of former athletes, media, sports organizations and governing bodies.
Along with Harper, 2006 female ballot includes Belgium tennis player Justine Henin-Hardenne, Canadian speed skater Cindy Klassen, WNBA All-Star Lisa Leslie, French swimming star Laure Manaudou, French tennis player Amelie Mauresmo, Mexican golfer Lorena Ochoa, American sprinter Sanya Richards, Russian tennis player Maria Sharapova, Russian figure skater Irina Slutskaya. LPGA player Karrie Webb and Chinese gymnast Nan Zhang.
There is also a male recipient of the award. The 2006 male ballot features South Korean speed skater Hyun-Soo Ahn, Ethiopian runner Kenenisa Bekele, Italian soccer star Fabio Cannavaro, Swiss tennis player Roger Federer, American NASCAR champion Jimmie Johnson, American golfer Phil Mickelson, American swimming star Michael Phelps, Major League Baseball All Star Albert Pujols, Heisman Trophy candidate Troy Smith, American basketball player Dwyane Wade, American golfer Tiger Woods and American football player Vince Young.
As in years past, the male or female athlete receiving the most votes will be named the Academy's Athlete of the Year. Past winners include Lance Armstrong, Barry Bonds, Mia Hamm, Michael Jordan, Annika Sorenstam and Tiger Woods. In addition to the overall winner, a Female Athlete of the Year and Male Athlete of the Year will be named. These two awards will go to the athlete who receives the most votes, outside of the overall winner, in each of the respective categories.
Last year, as the leading overall vote-getter in the combined male and female categories, tennis sensation Roger Federer won the 2005 Outstanding Athlete of the Year and was presented his award on center court at the NASDAQ 100 in Miami. IndyCar Rookie of the Year Danica Patrick received the most votes in the women's category to earn the 2005 Female Athlete of the Year honor. Seven-time Tour de France champion Lance Armstrong, who single-handedly revitalized the greatest race in cycling, won the 2005 Male Athlete of the Year award.
The United States Sports Academy is an independent, non-profit, accredited, special mission sports university created to serve the nation and the world with programs in instruction, research and service. The role of the Academy is to prepare men and women for careers in the profession of sports.
For more information about the United States Sports Academy, "America's Sports University," call 251-626-3303 or visit the Academy's website http://www.ussa.edu.
