Russian Vancouver 2010 Winter Games silver and bronze medallist Roman Petushkov features on the shortlist having won both the biathlon and cross country skiing overall World Cup trophies for the season in the men's sitting class after dominating the field in both disciplines.

He is joined by compatriot Alena Kaufman, who also won both the biathlon and cross country skiing overall World Cup trophies, but in the women's standing class, while fellow standing skier Markus Salcher of Austria also features among the nominees having recorded three first-place finishes at the IPC Alpine Skiing World Cup in Panorama, Canada, before securing four wins at the World Cup event in Tignes, France.

Anna Schaffelhuber features on the IPC Athlete of the Month shortlist after proving to be almost unbeatable in January ©Getty Images


German Vancouver 2010 bronze medallist Anna Schaffelhuber is also a strong contender for the Athlete of the Month title after she proved to be almost unbeatable at three IPC Alpine Skiing World Cup events.

The slalom world champion, who was ranked as the world's top sit-skier in 2012-2013, claimed four wins at the World Cup in Panorama, three at Copper Mountain in the United States and four in Tignes.

American snowboarder Mike Shea completes the snowsport nominations for the IPC award as he leads the World Cup standings this season after two wins at the IPC Alpine Skiing (IPCAS) Snowboard World Cup in Big White, Canada, and a top finish at the World Cup event in Copper Mountain.

Shingo Kunieda is the only non-winter sport athlete on the IPC Athlete of the Month shortlist for January after securing his seventh Australian Open singles title ©Getty Images

Japanese wheelchair tennis player Shingo Kunieda completes the shortlist as its only non-snowsport athlete.

The three-time Paralympic champion secured his place among the nominations after an outstanding month that saw him claim his seventh Australian Open singles title, defeating Argentina's Gustavo Fernandez in the final 6-0, 6-1.

He also paired up with France's Stéphane Houdet to secure their fifth Grand Slam doubles title together.

Voting is now open on the IPC website until 12:00 (CEST) on February 10.

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