Kuerten acclaimed Brazil's top sportsman

Brazil hailed Gustavo Kuerten as the top sportsman in the country on Tuesday.

Kuerten became the first South American to finish top of the year-end rankings at the weekend -- an achievement that coincided with a black period for Brazilian football.

Soccer has been hit by a series of scandals and is under investigation by two separate commissions of inquiry.

The Brazilian print media and radio, clearly relieved at having some good news for a change, continued to devote enormous coverage to Kuerten two days after his straight sets victory over Andre Agassi in the Master Cup final in Lisbon.

"The post which has been left vacant since the death of Ayrton Senna in 1994 now has an occupier," said the Jornal do Brasil.

"Brazil is a country that needs a sports idol," said basketball player Oscar Schmidt in the same newspaper.

"It's the only way of showing Brazil in a positive light -- a country which most of the time is known for street children, fire in the Amazon basin and other bad things."

Juca Kfouri, columnist in the sports daily Lance, emphasised Kuerten's sportsmanlike behaviour, which he said was a stark contrast to the cynicism which prevails in the national sport.

"His essential importance at the moment is that he is a winner who knows how to accept defeat," Kfouri said.