Al Gore is a 5:2 favorite to win the 2007 Nobel Peace Prize, while President George Bush is the definitive long shot at 100:1.
The right-wing radio host Rush Limbaugh and former British Prime Minister Tony Blair also come in at 100:1 at BetUS.com, where anyone can place a bet on just about anything.
The pop star Bono is holding his own at 25:1 as of press time. Oprah Winfrey is a more distant 50:1. Martti Ahtisaari, past president of Finland, is among the favorites at 5:1.
Gore is likely favored by the public because of his controversial climate-change film, "An Inconvenient Truth."
“If Al Gore won an Academy Award and the Nobel Peace Prize for 'An Inconvenient Truth,' it would probably be considered the most successful documentary in history,” said BetUS.com spokesperson Reed Richards. “All the candidates have done such great work, just to be nominated is a reward in itself.”
Past winners include Martin Luther King Jr. and Mother Teresa. Last year the prize went to Muhammad Yunus, a Bangladeshi banker and economist.
The Nobel Peace Prize, for which nominees are revealed decades later, will be announced Friday. The Peace Prize is awarded by the Norwegian Nobel Committee, composed of five members appointed by the country's Parliament. The foundations for this and the other Nobel prizes were set up by inventor and entrepreneur Alfred Nobel.
- Quiz: Great Inventions
- Physics Nobel for Discovery that Made iPods Possible
- Vote for the Greatest Modern Mind
