The Olympic Committee of Brazil held its annual Brazil Olympic Awards this week, and several swimmers earned nominations for the event’s top awards.
FINA’s Open Water World Cup champion Ana Marcela Cunha was up for the night’s biggest award, best female athlete. Cunha won 5 of the 8 races on the World Cup circuit and dominated the overall points with 149, topping her closest competitor by more than 80.
That award ultimately went to sailing duo Martine Grael and Kahena Kunze, who were named World Sailors of the year back in November.
The Awards also added a new category, the Atleta da Torcida, or ‘Athlete of the Fans’. That award called for fans to vote on social media to determine the winner of a trophy and a cash prize. The award ultimately went to artistic gymnast Flavia Saraiva, but both Cesar Cielo and Junior World Record-breaker Matheus Santana were nominated.
You can read more about the awards on Globo.com’s SporTV site here.
