Laureus Spirit of Sport Award

Laureus Spirit of Sport Award
Awarded for"those individual athletes or teams who, through their remarkable success, their refusal to accept defeat or their unquestionable contribution to the enjoyment of the game"[1]
LocationBerlin (2020)[2]
Presented byLaureus Sport for Good Foundation
First awarded2005
Currently held byNot awarded[2]
WebsiteOfficial website

The Laureus Spirit of Sport Award is an award honouring "those individual athletes or teams who, through their remarkable success, their refusal to accept defeat or their unquestionable contribution to the enjoyment of the game".[1] It was first awarded in 2005 as one of the discretionary awards presented during the Laureus World Sports Awards.[3] The awards are presented by the Laureus Sport for Good Foundation, a global organisation involved in more than 150 charity projects supporting 500,000 young people.[4] The first ceremony was held on 25 May 2000 in Monte Carlo, at which Nelson Mandela gave the keynote speech.[5] The recipient is presented with a Laureus statuette, created by Cartier, at an annual awards ceremony held in various locations around the world.[6] Although the Laureus Awards ceremony is held annually, the Spirit of Sport Award is not necessarily presented every time; it is one of a number of discretionary awards that can be given by the Laureus World Sports Academy.[3] Since its establishment, no award has been made six times, in 2009, 2010, 2012, 2013, 2018 and 2020.

The inaugural winner of the Laureus Spirit of Sport Award in 2005 was the American baseball team Boston Red Sox who won their first World Series for 86 years in the 2004 Major League Baseball season. As of 2017, five teams and four individuals have received the award. One of these individuals was honoured posthumously: Dutch former footballer and coach Johan Cruyff won the accolade in 2016, having died the previous month; his award was presented to his son Jordi Cruyff by fellow Dutchman Ruud Gullit at the ceremony in Berlin.[7] No award was made in 2020;[2][8] the most recent recipient of the Laureus Spirit of Sport Award was the American alpine skier Lindsey Vonn in 2019.[9]

  1. ^ a b "Boston Red Sox – Spirit of Sport". Laureus. Archived from the original on 8 November 2017. Retrieved 8 November 2017.
  2. ^ a b c Cite error: The named reference hindu2020 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ a b "The awards". Laureus. Archived from the original on 18 March 2017. Retrieved 18 October 2017.
  4. ^ Snook, Ian (20 April 2016). "It's more than just an award". Taranaki Daily News. Archived from the original on 20 November 2017. Retrieved 18 October 2017 – via Stuff.co.nz.
  5. ^ Sugden, John; Tomlinson, Alan (30 April 2017). Sport and Peace-Building in Divided Societies: Playing with Enemies. Taylor and Francis. p. 163. ISBN 978-1-136-29233-0. Archived from the original on 18 October 2017.
  6. ^ "Did you know?". Laureus. Archived from the original on 18 March 2017. Retrieved 18 October 2017.
  7. ^ "Tribute to football legend Johan Cruyff". Laureus. 18 April 2016. Archived from the original on 8 November 2017. Retrieved 8 November 2017.
  8. ^ Cite error: The named reference no18 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  9. ^ Cite error: The named reference twenty19 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).