Natalie du Toit kisses her award. (AFP)

Abu Dhabi - South African swimmer Natalie du Toit, who is breaking down the barriers between disabled and able-bodied sport, received an enthusiastic welcome from a star-studded audience in Abu Dhabi as she received the 2010 Laureus World Sportsperson of the Year with a Disability Award.

After receiving the Award from Paralympic triple World Record holder Oscar Pistorius and American movie star Kyle MacLachlan, a delighted Natalie said: "It is a great honour to be receiving this prestigious award. It is the third time that I've been to the Laureus Awards and the second time that I've been nominated. In 2010 it is our soccer World Cup, and to hold South Africa's name high is very special for me. I know Laureus was started and founded by South Africans.

"Being a Friend & Ambassador for Laureus makes it very special for me to see what sport can do, how sports people can go into communities and really uplift them. I've seen those community projects, so to Laureus 'well done'."

At the age of 14, in 2001, Natalie’s left leg had been amputated at the knee after she was hit by a car while riding her scooter.

History was made in Beijing in 2008 when she became the first amputee ever to qualify for the Olympics, where she finished 16th in the 10km open water swim. She is one of only two athletes to have competed in both the Olympic Games and the Paralympic Games. In the Paralympics, she became the toast of South Africa after winning five gold medals.

In 2009, she kept up her remarkable performances and continued to dominate able-bodied and disabled swimming in South Africa. She also managed to win the 10km FINA women’s swim in under 1hr 57mins in Dubai.

In December she was presented with the order of ‘Ikhamanga In Gold’, by President Zuma, the highest honour any South African athlete can receive. Natalie has previously been nominated for the Laureus Disability Award in 2004. She is also a member of the Laureus Friends & Ambassadors programme.

Laureus World Sports Academy Member and Paralympic legend Tanni Grey-Thompson said: "I am delighted that my fellow Academy Members voted for Natalie. What she has achieved over the last decade has been amazing. Natalie is a fantastic ambassador for her sport and as one of only two people to have competed in both the Olympic and Paralympic Games, a remarkable athlete. She has shown determination and courage throughout her career and fully deserves this Award."

Also nominated for the Laureus Disability Award were Australia’s wheelchair sportsmen Kurt Fearnley (marathon) and Justin Eveson (basketball), Turkish archer Gizem Girismen, Japan’s wheelchair tennis star Shingo Kunieda and German cyclist Michael Teuber.

The 2010 Laureus World Sports Awards, which recognise sporting achievement during the period January 1 - December 31, 2009, are the premier honours on the international sporting calendar. The winners are chosen by the Laureus World Sports Academy, the ultimate sports jury, made up of 46 of the greatest sportsmen and sportswomen of all time. The living legends of sport honouring the great athletes of today.

The names of the winners were announced at a televised Awards Ceremony staged at the Emirates Palace in Abu Dhabi which also celebrated the first ten years in the life of Laureus and was attended by global figures from the world of sport and entertainment.

The members of the Laureus World Sports Academy present were: Giacomo Agostini, Marcus Allen, Franz Beckenbauer, Boris Becker, Ian Botham, Sergey Bubka, Nadia Comaneci, Kapil Dev, Emerson Fittipaldi, Sean Fitzpatrick, Dawn Fraser, Cathy Freeman, Mika Hakkinen, Tony Hawk, Mike Horn, Kip Keino, Edwin Moses, Nawal El Moutawakel, Robby Naish, Alexey Nemov, Morne du Plessis, Hugo Porta, Monica Seles, Daley Thompson, Alberto Tomba and Steve Waugh.

Double Oscar-winning Hollywood star Kevin Spacey hosted the glittering Awards Ceremony. Among the guests in a packed auditorium at the Emirates Palace were Oscar-winning actress Gwyneth Paltrow, British film stars Hugh Grant and Clive Owen, American actors Kyle MacLachlan from Desperate Housewives and Michelle Rodriguez who played leading roles in the Oscar-winning movie Avatar and the TV series Lost, Grammy nominated singer-songwriter Mika who earlier drew up to the red carpet in a spectacular gull-wing Mercedes-Benz, England Test cricketer Andrew Flintoff, Formula One winner David Coulthard, world boxing champion Amir Khan, Olympic rowing legend Steve Redgrave, and supermodel Jessica Michibata.

The 2010 Laureus World Sports Awards are supported by Host Partner Aabar Investments PJSC. Abu Dhabi, the capital city of the United Arab Emirates, offers a fascinating combination of the old and the new; a blend of Arabian hospitality and mystique where a mixture of culture and tradition come together against a backdrop of the most modern world-class infrastructure.

Abu Dhabi is developing a reputation as a leading international sporting venue. The Laureus World Sports Awards is the latest high profile sports event to be staged in Abu Dhabi. Last year Abu Dhabi was chosen to stage football’s FIFA Club World Cup, and the Abu Dhabi Formula One Grand Prix and the Abu Dhabi Golf Championship are now highlights of the sporting calendar in the city.

The Awards were announced in seven categories.

The winners:

Laureus World Sportsman of the Year: Usain Bolt
Laureus World Sportswoman of the Year: Serena Williams
Laureus World Team of the Year: Brawn GP Formula One
Laureus World Breakthrough of the Year: Jenson Button
Laureus World Comeback of the Year: Kim Clijsters
Laureus World Sportsperson of the Year with a Disability: Natalie du Toit
Laureus World Action Sportsperson of the Year: Stephanie Gilmore

There were two additional Awards:
The Laureus Lifetime Achievement Award was presented to athletics legend Nawal El Moutawakel, while American basketball star Dikembe Mutombo won the Laureus Sport for Good Award for his charitable work in the Congo.

For full biographies of the winners go to http://www.laureus.com/awards/2010/winners