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07th Dec 2022

Ukraine president Volodymyr Zelensky named Time Magazine’s 2022 Person of the Year

Charlie Herbert

Volodymyr Zelensky time

The magazine said the decision was the ‘most clear-cut in memory’

Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky has been named Time Magazine’s Person of the Year for 2022, alongside the “spirit of Ukraine.”

The prestigious magazine awards its Person of the Year title to an event or figure deemed to have had the most influence on global events over the past 12 months.

Other finalists this year included protesters in Iran, China’s leader Xi Jinping and the US Supreme Court.

The magazine’s editor said the decision was “the most clear-cut in memory”.

“In a world that had come to be defined by its divisiveness, there was a coming together around this cause, around this country,” Edward Felsenthal wrote.

The magazine said President Zelensky had inspired Ukrainians and was recognised internationally for his courage in resisting the Russian invasion.

“Zelensky’s success as a wartime leader has relied on the fact that courage is contagious,” it said.

The magazine’s cover features several other figures from the war in Ukraine, including British trauma surgeon David Nott, who went to the country after the Russian invasion to help those injured in fighting.

K-pop band Blackpink were recognised as Time’s Entertainer of the year, American baseballer Aaron Judge as the Athlete of the Year and Malaysian actress Michelle Yeoh as the Icon of the Year.

Last year’s winner Elon Musk was again listed as a finalist. In 2021, his electric car company, Tesla, became the most valuable carmaker in the world.

The tradition began in 1927 – although back then it was the Man of the Year.

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