Sports Illustrated Names Serena Williams Sportsperson Of The Year

Sports Illustrated has named tennis player Serena Williams its '15 Sportsperson of the Year, with the award itself carrying a new name going forward from its prior designation of Sportsman of the Year. Williams beats out a field of other candidates that included Warriors G Stephen Curry, golfer Jordan Spieth and fellow tennis player Novak Djokovic. She will be feted tomorrow night in N.Y. at an event that will also involve Jack Nicklaus receiving the newly renamed Muhummad Ali Legacy Award. Williams is the first female to receive the award alone since Mary Decker in '83. 

SI internally made its selection of Williams for Sportsperson of the Year in early November, prior to the Warriors winning their first 24 games of the '15-16 season. For Curry, that adds to a year that also included winning the team’s first NBA title in 40 years and an NBA MVP. “The Warriors are an enormous story, but I still feel really comfortable with this choice, and feel as good today about it as I did when we made it,” SI Group Editor Paul Fichtenbaum said.