Cape Town - South African Olympic swimmer Natalie du Toit has been honoured as one of five nominees for the Laureus Sporting Moment of the last 20 years. 

The category, as chosen by the fans through online voting, will form part of the 20th Laureus World Sports Awards to be hosted in Berlin on Monday. 

Du Toit, who had her left leg amputated when she was just 14 years old after being hit by a car while riding her scooter, participated as an able-bodied participant at the 2008 Beijing Olympics where she finished 16th in the 10km open water marathon. 

At the time, Du Toit was just the third amputee to ever compete at the Olympics. 

Du Toit is nominated alongside the Indian men's cricket team that won the 2011 World Cup, the surviving players of the Chapecoense football team, mountain climber Xia Boyu and race car driver Mick Schumacher. 

According to a release, the Laureus Sporting Moment Award "celebrates the moments where sport has unified people in the most extraordinary way, shining a light on those unforgettable moments that have changed sporting history and inspired fans and followers around the globe.

"Sports fans from around the world voted for their greatest sporting moments from the new millennium exemplifying sporting values such as fair play, sportsmanship, humanity, overcoming adversity, dedication and the power to unite through sport – all key values of the Laureus movement and the shortlist is down to the top five: 

Ability of the Mind

The story of South African swimmer Natalie du Toit, who not only returned to swimming after having her left leg amputated following a scooter accident, she competed against able-bodied swimmers at both Commonwealth and Olympic Games. 

Carried on the Shoulders of a Nation

On his sixth attempt, legendary batsman Sachin Tendulkar and the India men’s national cricket team finally achieved a glorious victory at the 2011 ICC World Cup. India’s historic defeat of Sri Lanka by six wickets in the final was watched live by an estimated 135 million fans across India. 

Eternal Champions

The story of incredible strength and fortitude shown by the Chapecoense football team whose team was wiped out by a plane crash whilst traveling to the 2016 Copa Sudamericana finals. Just 54 days after the disaster Chapecoense played a friendly match against Palmeiras. In a highly charged ceremony, surviving players Jackson Follman, Alan Ruschel and Neto wept as they received the Copa Sudamericana trophy on behalf of their teammates. 

A Challenge of Fate

Already a double-amputee having lost his feet whilst attempting to ascend Everest, Xia Boyu’s world was turned upside-down when he lost both his legs to cancer. However in 2018, at the age of 69 and on his fifth attempt, Xia Boyu realised his ultimate dream – he climbed Mount Everest, becoming only the second double-amputee ever to scale the mountain and the first to reach the summit from the Nepalese side. 

Like Father, Like Son

Following in the footsteps of the most successful driver in the history of Formula One is a tough challenge, yet Mick Schumacher is doing just that. Competing on the formula 2 circuit, and earning a place in the Ferrari driving Academy, Mick is making waves in the motorsports world.

To mark the 15th anniversary of his father’s 2004 title success, Mick Schumacher took part in a demonstration run at the track where Michael Schumacher historically captured four of his record 91 Formula One wins - Hockenheim. Mick retraced his Dad’s footsteps and got behind the wheel of Michael’s race-winning car, in a poignant and emotional display.