It’s that time of year again.

To celebrate the world’s top female athletes, the Women’s Sports Foundation nominated elite athletes from 20 different sports for individual and team Sportswoman of the Year awards.

The 2010 finalists have distinguished themselves from the field by their record-breaking, historic or simply amazing athletic performances on the world stage.

Fans can vote for the Sportswoman of the Year now through Aug. 31, 2010, at www.WomensSportsFoundation.org. The winners will be announced October 12 at the Women’s Sports Foundation 31st Annual Salute to Women in Sports Awards gala in New York City.

The following is a list of 2010 finalists:

Individual Sport

Torah Bright (Australia) – Snowboarding

• Won the halfpipe event at the World Cup in Switzerland as well as the superpipe event at the Toyota Championships of the Winter Dew Tour in February.
• Won gold at the Olympic Winter Games in the halfpipe and silver in the women’s snowboard superpipe at Winter X-Games Europe.
• April 2010, Bright was a joint recipient of the Ski & Snowboard Australia Athlete of the Year. She also won Best Female Action Sports Athlete at the 2010 ESPY’s in July.

Rebecca Bross (Plano, Texas) – Gymnastics

• Claimed four medals at the 2010 Visa Championships, winning gold in the all-around, balance beam and uneven bars and capturing silver on the floor exercise
• Won a silver medal in the all-around and tied for bronze on the uneven bars at the 2009 World Gymnastics Championships
• Took home a silver medal in the floor exercise and a pair of bronze medals in the all-around and on the balance beam at the 2009 Visa Championships

Yu-Na Kim (Korea) – Figure Skating

• 2009 Skate America, Kim placed first again after the short program with the score of 76.28, 17.48 points ahead of her closest competitor, and earned a spot in the Grand Prix Final in December.
• Finished first after the short program in the Grand Prix Final and finished first in the 2009-2010 Grand Prix Rankings.
• In 2010, she won gold at the Olympic Winter Games and finished second at the ISU World Championships in March.
• In July, she was appointed UNICEF’s International Goodwill Ambassador. Kim is currently ranked No.1 by the International Skating Union (ISU).

Kelly Kulick (Union, N.J.) – Bowling

• Five-time member of Team USA and a two-time member of Junior Team USA
• Six-time medalist at the World Youth Championships
• Captured the gold medal at the 1999 Pan American Games for Team USA

Ai Miyazato- (Japan) – Golf

• September 2009, finished second at the Samsung World Championship.
• Ended the year ranked No.8 in the Rolex Rankings and third on the LPGA official money list.
• First player since 1966 to win consecutive season-opening events, winning the Honda PTT LPGA Thailand in February and the Tres Marias Championship in May 2010.
• Won the ShopRite LPGA Classic and tied for third at the LPGA Championships, presented by Wegmans.
• Ranked No.2 in the Rolex Rankings at the end of July and is in second place for the Rolex Player of the Year. She is also ranked No.1 for the most victories in 2010.

Alana Nichols (Farmington, N.M.) – Paralympic Skiing and Wheelchair Basketball

• Four-time medalist at the 2010 Paralympic Winter Games in Vancouver winning gold in the giant slalom and downhill, silver in the super-G and bronze in the super combined
• Paralympic gold medalist at the 2008 Paralympic Games in Beijing claiming gold as a member of the U.S. Paralympic Women’s Wheelchair Basketball Team
• The only female U.S. Paralympian to have won gold medals at the Paralympic Games in both summer and winter sports

Sanya Richards (Austin, Texas) – Track & Field

• Two-time Olympic gold medalist in the 4x400m relay and 400m Olympic bronze medalist
• Currently ranked No. 1 in the world in the 400m by the IAAF and the current American Record Holder for the 400m dash (48.70)
• Five-time USA Outdoor Champion
• IAAF World Athlete of the Year and Jesse Owens Award winner in 2006

Anna Tunnicliffe (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.) – Sailing

• Captured the 2008 Olympic gold medal in Beijing
• Currently ranked No. 3 in the ISAF Women’s Match Racing World Ranking (July 2010)
• Named Rolex U.S. Sailing Yachtswoman of the Year in 2008
• Awarded the 2009 ISAF Rolex World Sailor of the Year in 2009

Lindsey Vonn (Vail, Colo.) – Alpine Skiing

• Two-time medalist at the 2010 Olympic Winter Games in Vancouver claiming gold in the downhill and silver in the Super-G
• Four-time World Championship medalist taking gold in the Downhill and Super-G in 2009 and silver in the Downhill and Super-G in 2007
• Winner of the overall World Cup championships in 2008, 2009 and 2010, the first American woman and the second woman ever to accomplish the feat
• Won the World Cup discipline championships in downhill in 2008, 2009 and 2010, the Super-G in 2009 and 2010 (the first American woman to do so) and the combined in 2010
• Has recorded the most World Cup victories (33) in American history
• 2009 U.S. Olympic Committee SportsWoman of the Year

Serena Williams (Palm Beach Gardens, Fla.) – Tennis

• Two-time Olympic gold medalist capturing gold in doubles competition in the 2000 and 2008 Olympic Games
• Currently ranked No. 1 in the world in singles and No. 2 in doubles by the World Tennis Association
• Owns 27 Grand Slam titles (13 singles, 12 doubles & two mixed doubles), which places her ninth on the all-time list
• Won the Laureus Sportswoman of the Year Award and was named WTA World Player of the Year in March 2010
• Named Best Female Tennis Player at the 2010 ESPYs

Team Sport

Meghan Agosta (Canada) –Ice Hockey

• February 2010, won her second gold medal with her teammates on the Canadian women’s ice hockey team at the Olympic Winter Games.
• Was named MVP of the Olympic tournament, voted as the best forward by the tournament directorate, and earned a spot on the media all-star team after recording 15 points (nine goals, six assists) in five games. Agosta’s nine goals broke the record for the most goals scored at the Olympic Winter Games. Agosta scored an Olympic Winter Games hat trick (three goals in one game) during the match against Sweden.
• Recognized as one of the best players on the No. 1 ranked Canadian team by the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF).

Betsey Armstrong (Ann Arbor, Mich.) – Water Polo

• 2008 Olympic silver medalist
• Goalkeeper for the USA Water Polo team, which is currently ranked No. 1 in the world by the International Swimming Federation (FINA)
• Named Swimming World Magazine’s Female Water Polo Player of the Year in 2009
• Made 67 saves during the gold medal run at the 2009 FINA World Championships
• Named the top goalkeeper of the FINA World League Super Final in June 2010

Jennie Finch (La Mirada, Calif.) – Softball

• Two-time Olympic medalist for Team USA, helping the team earn a gold medal in 2004 and silver in 2008 from behind the mound
• Named the 2009 USA Softball Female Athlete of the Year
• Finished her 10-year career with the USA Softball National Team program with a gold medal at the World Cup of Softball in July 2010

Larissa Franca & Juliana Felisberta Silva (Brazil) – Beach Volleyball

• November 2009, named beach volleyball team of the year by the International Federation of Volleyball (FIVB). Felisberta Silva was also named Best Offensive Player and Most Outstanding Player, and Franca was named Best Defensive Player and Best Setter.
• Earned third SWATCH FIVB world tour gold medal in May 2010. Won the international beach volleyball ConocoPhillips Grand Slam in Stavanger, Norway in June, taking only 43 minutes to beat their third-seeded competitors.
• Won the women’s final at the Beach Volleyball World Tour in July and currently have seven wins through 11 matches in international play. Currently the top-seeded women’s volleyball team in the FIVB.

Megan Hodge (Durham, N.C.) – Volleyball

• In December 2009, Hodge led Penn State to a perfect 38-0 season record and helped the Nittany Lions win the 2009 NCAA National Championship
• American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) First Team All-American for four consecutive years and a two-time Big 10 player of the year
• Co-winner of the 2010 Honda-Broderick Cup, which is awarded to the athlete who, by vote of athletic directors across the country, is judged most deserving of recognition as the Collegiate Woman Athlete of the Year

Kaillie Humphries and Heather Moyse (Canada) –Bobsled

• Started the 2009-2010 World Cup season with a bronze medal in Lake Placid and a first place finish in Altenberg, Germany.
• Silver medal in Königssee, Germany and a bronze medal in Igls, Austria.
• Gold at the Olympic Winter Games with an excellent four-run combined time of three minutes, 32.28 seconds. First three (of four) runs set a new track record en route to being .85 seconds faster than the second place sled. Currently hold seven World Cup track start records.

Katie O’Donnell (Blue Bell, Pa.) – Field Hockey

• Strongest offensive threat in the country in women’s field hockey throughout 2009
• Earned the Honda Collegiate Women Sports Award for the nation’s top college field hockey player of 2009
• Currently the starting center forward on the U.S. National Team and a member of the No. 1 ranked Maryland Terrapins

Diana Taurasi (Chino, Calif.) – Basketball

• Two-time Olympic champion fron the Athens 2004 Olympic Games and the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games
• Led the Phoenix Mercury to the 2009 National Championship title
• 2009 Most Valuable Player and WNBA Finals Most Valuable Player
• Earned the WNBA Peak Performer Award for leading the WNBA in scoring.
• Member of the 2009-2012 USA Women’s Basketball National Team and the EuroLeague All-Star team

Marta Vieira da Silva (Brazil) – Soccer

• December 2009, won the FIFA World Player of the Year Award for the fourth year in a row.
• Led Women’s Professional Soccer (WPS) with 10 goals and threw in three assists during the league’s inaugural season, en route to winning the 2009 WPS Puma Golden Boot Award.
• Twice named to the WPS All-Star Team and twice honored as the game’s MVP.
• Michelle Akers Award as the WPS league MVP.
• Leads WPS with 13 goals for the 2010 season, and helped FC Gold Pride capture the WPS Regular Season Championship.
• Currently the No. 1 ranked female soccer player by the World Soccer Federation (WSF) and her team (Brazil) is ranked third by the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA).

Who do you think will win?

View Original Post at prettytough.com

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