Swedish pole vault star Armand “Mondo” Duplantis and Spanish footballer Aitana Bonmatí have been voted the world’s best athletes for 2025 by the International Sports Press Association (AIPS). Paris Saint-Germain was named Team of the Year, while the FIFA Club World Cup received the award for best press facilities.

The results were announced on December 30 following AIPS’ annual global vote, which saw 836 sports journalists from 121 countries take part. The Greek women’s national water polo team, which won gold at the 2025 World Championships in Singapore, was nominated in the Team of the Year category but did not finish in the top ten.

Duplantis Dominates the Vote

Duplantis topped the men’s poll with 1,182 points, repeating his success from 2024 after another extraordinary season. The 25-year-old broke the men’s pole vault world record four times in 2025—clearing 6.27m in Clermont-Ferrand, 6.28m in Stockholm, 6.29m in Budapest, and 6.30m in Tokyo, where he secured his third consecutive world title.

Since February 2020, Duplantis has rewritten the world record an astonishing 14 times. He went unbeaten across 16 competitions this year, claiming a third straight world indoor title in Nanjing and his fifth consecutive Diamond League crown in Zurich.

Second place went to 22-year-old Spanish tennis sensation Carlos Alcaraz, who amassed 784 points. Alcaraz enjoyed a stellar season, winning eight titles including Roland Garros and the US Open, finishing with a tour-leading 71 victories and ending the year as the ATP world No. 1.

French footballer Ousmane Dembélé finished third with 713 points after a remarkable campaign with Paris Saint-Germain. He collected six trophies—the Trophée des Champions, Ligue 1, Coupe de France, UEFA Champions League, UEFA Super Cup, and FIFA Intercontinental Cup—while also earning individual honours including Ligue 1 top scorer, UEFA Champions League Player of the Season, the Ballon d’Or, and FIFA Best Men’s Player.

Bonmatí Leads Women’s Rankings

In the women’s category, Aitana Bonmatí claimed top spot with 824 points, earning her first AIPS Female Athlete of the Year award after finishing third in 2023 and second in 2024. The 27-year-old Barcelona and Spain midfielder was named MVP of both the UEFA Women’s Champions League and UEFA Women’s EURO, despite finishing runner-up in both competitions.

Bonmatí also played a key role in Barcelona’s domestic treble and capped the year by winning the Ballon d’Or and The Best FIFA Women’s Player award for the third consecutive season. However, she is set to miss several months of action in 2026 after suffering a fractured left fibula during training with Spain on November 30, ahead of the UEFA Women’s Nations League final against Germany.

Kenyan distance runner Beatrice Chebet finished second with 453 points after a historic double at the 2025 World Championships in Tokyo, where she won both the 5,000m and 10,000m titles. Earlier in the year, she made history at the Eugene Diamond League by breaking the women’s 5,000m world record, becoming the first woman to dip below 14 minutes.

Third place went to Belarusian tennis star Aryna Sabalenka with 446 points. Sabalenka was named WTA Player of the Year for the second straight season after reaching nine finals, winning four titles, recording 63 victories, and setting a new single-season prize-money record. She held the world No. 1 ranking throughout the year, finishing top of the standings for a second consecutive season.