At the prestigious Laureus Sports Awards which took place in Barcelona last night, reigning MotoGP World Champion Valentino Rossi was awarded with the coveted ‘Spirit of Sport’ prize, given to the individual that has raised the profile of his or her chosen field. The ceremony was a star-studded affair, with Spain’s King Juan Carlos present, and Hollywood actors Cuba Gooding Jr. and Teri Hatcher presenting. A who’s who of sporting legends were also in attendance, but it was once again Valentino Rossi who stole the show, bringing proceedings to a close by riding onto stage on a Yamaha R1 before collecting his award from MotoGP Legend Giacomo Agostini and Formula 1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone. Rossi had earlier also been a nomination for World Sportsman of the Year for the third consecutive time, however that accolade fell to Swiss tennis sensation Roger Federer. Nevertheless when he finally made his entrance with trademark flamboyance the five-time MotoGP World Champion received a rapturous applause from the gathered luminaries. Once the ceremony was finished, Rossi remarked, “I am very happy to have received this award tonight, and very proud to be considered such an important ambassador for our sport. It’s also a big honour for me to be nominated once again for the main award alongside other such great sportsmen.” The Laureus Sports Awards are voted for by the Laureus Academy’s 42 members, which includes Agostini and other sporting legends such as Bobby Charlton, Seve Ballesteros, Ed Moses and Boris Becker. Rossi flew to the event especially, after having completed a day’s testing at the Le Mans circuit where he was forced to retire during Sunday’s race. The award was given to him for his part in raising MotoGP’s profile around the world and for his continued high level of performance after five consecutive MotoGP titles.