Nico voted Swiss Newcomer of the Year

Big honor for Nico: He’s been voted “Newcomer of the Year 2017” during last night’s CS Sports Awards in Zurich, Switzerland.

The primetime television show annually honors Switzerland’s most outstanding athletes of the past year. In his category, Nico, who got 70.2% of the votes, bested track & field standout Géraldine Ruckstuhl (22.4%) and water diver Michelle Heimberg (9.4%), who both enjoyed success in their respective sports on the European level.

Nico, who thanked the audience via a video message, had his dad Rino accept the award in his absence. It was presented to him by Swiss NHL pioneer Mark Streit, who recently retired from the sport after a 12-year NHL career.