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BEIJING, Dec. 27-- As the sporting year draws to a close, here is Xinhua News Agency's selection of the world's top 10 athletes in 2019: 1. Lionel Messi (Argentina, football) The 32-year-old Argentina and Barcelona forward was voted FIFA Men's Player in the Year on September 23. He also won the Ballon d'Or on December 2, becoming the first footballer in history to win the award six times. 2. Zhu Ting (China, volleyball) Captain Zhu led China to glory in the FIVB Women's World Cup in September, and became the first player ever to be named MVP in consecutive tournaments. Earlier this year, the 25-year-old also helped her club VakifBank Istanbul win the Turkish league title, and was also voted that competition's MVP. 3. Rafael Nadal (Spain, tennis) Nadal, 33, won a record-extending 12th French Open in 2019. The Spaniard also won this year's U.S. Open and now has 19 Grand Slam titles, just one shy of Roger Federer's record. 4. Eliud Kipchoge (Kenya, athletics) On October 12, 35-year-old world marathon record holder Eliud Kipchoge became the first person to complete the marathon distance in under two hours, finishing the 42.195km run in Vienna in an unofficial time of one hour, 59 minutes and 40 seconds. 5. Lewis Hamilton (United Kingdom, motor racing) Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton was crowned Formula 1 world champion for the sixth time this season with 413 points. The 34-year-old Briton is now just one title shy of Michael Schumacher's record of seven. | 
