Yearender: Top 10 world athletes of 2021

BEIJING, Dec. 29 (Xinhua) -- As the sporting year draws to a close, here is Xinhua News Agency's selection of the world's top 10 athletes in 2021:

1. Lionel Messi (Argentina, football)

Lionel Messi poses with 2021 Ballon d'Or trophy during a ceremony held in Theatre du Chatelet, Paris, France, Nov. 29, 2021. (Photo by Henri Szwarc/Xinhua)

Messi was crowned with the Ballon d'Or award for a record-extending seventh time in 2021. The 34-year-old striker helped Argentina win the Copa America this summer which ended his long-standing title drought with the senior national team, and he was also named the best player of the tournament and claimed the Golden Boot. He also won the Copa del Rey with FC Barcelona and La Liga's top goalscorer award.

2. Novak Djokovic (Serbia, tennis)

Novak Djokovic of Serbia celebrates with the trophy after winning the Wimbledon men's final in London, Britain, on July 11, 2021. (Photo by Tim Ireland/Xinhua)

Djokovic, 34, won his 20th Grand Slam men's singles title at Wimbledon, equalling Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer's joint record. He also claimed the men's singles championship at the Australian Open and French Open in 2021.

3. Max Verstappen (Netherlands, Formula One)

Max Verstappen of the Netherlands celebrates with the trophy after winning the Formula One Abu Dhabi Grand Prix and the world champion of 2021 in Abu Dhabi, the United Arab Emirates, Dec. 12, 2021. (Xinhua)

Red Bull's Verstappen, 24, won the 2021 Formula 1 world championship after overtaking Mercedes' Lewis Hamilton on the last lap of the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. He is the first Dutch driver to win the Formula One World Championship.

4. Robert Lewandowski (Poland, football)

Robert Lewandowski speaks after receiving the Striker of the Year award at the ceremony for Ballon d'Or 2021, Nov. 29, 2021. (Photo by Henri Szwarc/Xinhua)

Lewandowski, 33, scored 41 goals in the 2020-21 season to beat Gerd Muller's goalscoring record for a single season and help Bayern Munich win their ninth consecutive Bundesliga title. He also won the European Golden Boot as the continent's top goalscorer for the 2020-21 season and Striker of the Year at the 2021 Ballon d'Or.

5. Elaine Thompson-Herah (Jamaica, athletics)

Elaine Thompson-Herah of Jamaica celebrates after winning the women's 100m final at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo, Japan, July 31, 2021. (Xinhua/Jia Yuchen)

Thompson-Herah, 29, collected gold medals in the women's 100m, 200m and 4x100m relay at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. On August 22, Thompson-Herah won the 100m with a new personal best of 10.54 seconds at the Wanda Diamond League meeting in Eugene, just 0.05 seconds shy of the world record. She was named the World Athletes of the Year at the World Athletics Awards 2021.

6. Ma Long (China, table tennis)

China's Ma Long celebrates after scoring during the men's singles final of the table tennis competition against his teammate Fan Zhendong, at Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo, Japan, July 30, 2021. (Xinhua/Wang Yuguo)

At the Tokyo Olympics, 33-year-old Ma beat compatriot Fan Zhendong 4-2 in the final, becoming the first table tennis player in history to win consecutive Olympic titles in the men's singles event. He is also the most decorated table tennis player ever with 26 world and Olympic titles.

7. Caeleb Dressel (United States, swimming)

Caeleb Dressel of the United States celebrates after the men's 50m freestyle final of swimming at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo, Japan, Aug. 1, 2021. (Xinhua/Xu Chang)

Dressel, 25, won five gold medals at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics in the men's 50 meter freestyle, 100 meter freestyle, 100 meter butterfly, 4x100m freestyle and 4x100m medley relays. He holds nine world records as of August 2021.

8. Karsten Warholm (Norway, athletics)

Karsten Warholm of Norway celebrates after the men's 400m hurdles final at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo, Japan, Aug. 3, 2021. (Xinhua/Li Gang)

In July 2021, 25-year-old Warholm broke the 29-year-old world record in 400 meters hurdles. A month later at the Tokyo Olympics, he won the gold medal with a time of 45.94 seconds, breaking his own world record. He was named the World Athletes of the Year at the World Athletics Awards 2021.

9. Viktor Axelsen (Denmark, badminton)

Viktor Axelsen of Denmark celebrates after the men's singles badminton final against Chen Long of China at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo, Japan, Aug. 2, 2021. (Xinhua/Xue Yubin)

Axelsen, 27, beat China's Chen Long in the men's singles final to win Olympic gold at the Tokyo Olympic Games. He then won the season-ending BWF World Tour Finals and was named the 2020/2021 BWF Male Player of the Year.

10. Lamont Marcell Jacobs (Italy, athletics)

Lamont Marcell Jacobs of Italy reacts after the men's 100m final at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo, Japan, Aug. 1, 2021. (Xinhua/Li Gang)

Jacobs, 27, was crowned as the world's fastest man at the Tokyo Olympics in 9.80 seconds, becoming the first European sprinter to win the men's 100m race since Barcelona 1992.