Soccer hero Pele and former world Champion boxer Muhammad Ali were among the eleven winners of "World Sports Awards of the Century" chosen on November 19 by a top-level international jury.

Pele, Ali and 91 other international sports heroes gathered for a gala at the Vienna State Opera, where the eleven male and female winners were announced in Vienna

The jury was headed by Juan Antonio Samaranch, the president of the International Olympic Committee, Prince Albert of Monaco, FIFA president Sepp Blatter and motor racing chief Max Mosley.

The Brazilian Pele was announced the winner in soccer.

"It's a very special day for me, 30 years ago I scored my 1, 000th goal, 200,000 people were shouting my name. My legs were shaking then, and today is the second time my legs were shaking," he said.

The former American boxer Ali, who suffers from Parkinson's disease, spoke slowly: "I have won many awards, many championships, and many fights. None have been as great as tonight."

Former US sprinter and long jumper Carl Lewis won the men's award in athletics and general sports while former Romanian gymnast Nadia Comaneci took the women's category.

Two of the greatest swimmers of all times, Mark Spitz, a 28- time world record holder and Australian Dawn Fraser were also among the winners.

Winners were announced in the following disciplines: athletics, ball sports, soccer, contact sports, motor sports, water sports and winter sports.

France's Formula One driver Alain Prost won the motor sports category while the winter sports awards went to Alpine skiers Annemarie Moser-Proell of Austria and Frenchman Jean-Claude Killy.

German tennis player Steffi Graf and US basketball star Michael Jordan were the only two award winners to miss the ceremony. They won the awards in the ball sports category.

"It was not just the sporting results that were important. There was also the question of leadership and influence on youth," said Gian Franco Kasper, a jury member and president of the International Ski Federation. (Xinhua)