World-famous singer Ronan Keating will perform at the 2011 Laureus World Sports Awards to be staged in Abu Dhabi on the evening of Monday, February 7 hosted by double Oscar winner Kevin Spacey.

Ronan Keating, who has sold more than 20 million records worldwide as a solo artist since leaving Boyzone, will be performing on stage to a star-studded audience of celebrities from the worlds of sport and entertainment. He said: “I’m a big sports fan and it’s just great to be able to attend the Laureus Awards for the first time and to be able to sing for such a special audience. I will be cheering for all the winners of the Awards, I know what a big night it will be for them, and I also totally empathise with the charity side of Laureus. I’ve tried to do what I can in my life to give something back to society and to help people and I know this is the real driving force behind Laureus through its Sport for Good Foundation. I am delighted to do what I can to help.”

Also at the Awards Ceremony will be popular Spanish actresses Elsa Pataky, who has appeared in 18 films in France and Spain and also played Elsa in the Samuel L Jackson film Snakes on a Plane, and Paz Vega, who was a star of 7 Vidas, a series billed as a Spanish Friends and has appeared in films such as Spanglish, The Spirit and co-starred with Morgan Freeman in 10 Items or Less.

British actor Matthew Goode, whose film successes include Match Point, Imagine Me & You, My Family and Other Animals, Copying Beethoven and The Lookout, and more recently Brideshead Revisited, Watchmen, A Single Man and Leap Year, will also attend the Awards Ceremony.

The Laureus World Sports Awards, which recognise sporting achievement, are the premier honours on the international sporting calendar. The winners, as voted by the Laureus World Sports Academy, the ultimate sports jury, made up of 46 of the greatest sportsmen and sportswomen of all time, will be unveiled at the globally televised Awards Ceremony at the Emirates Palace Hotel in Abu Dhabi.

The Laureus World Sports Awards is returning to Abu Dhabi thanks to the support of Aabar Investments PJS, who will once again be Host Partner for the event. His Excellency Khadem Al Qubaisi, Chairman of Aabar, said: "The Laureus World Sports Awards is a unique event. It was magnificent, a great success for Abu Dhabi when it was held here last March. The whole event was really superb. We will certainly try to do something special for this year’s Awards.”

Abu Dhabi, the capital city of the United Arab Emirates, offers a fascinating combination of the old and the new; a blend of Arabic 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 great sporting venue as host city for the FIFA Club World Cup, the Etihad Abu Dhabi Formula One Grand Prix and the Abu Dhabi Golf Championship, all highlights of the sporting calendar in the city.

Aabar Investments PJS is an investment company headquartered in Abu Dhabi. It invests in various sectors including aerospace, real estate, automotive and financial services. Its largest stakeholder is the International Petroleum Investment Company, which is wholly owned by the Government of the Emirate of Abu Dhabi.

Proceeds from the Laureus World Sports Awards directly benefit and underpin the work of the Laureus Sport for Good Foundation which supports 83 community sports projects around the world. Since its inception, Laureus has raised over €40 million for projects which have helped to improve the lives of more than one-and-a-half million young people.

The full list of Nominees for the 2011 Laureus World Sports Awards is:

Laureus World Sportsman of the Year
Kobe Bryant (US, basketball), Andres Iniesta (Spain, football), Lionel Messi (Argentina, football), Rafael Nadal (Spain, tennis), Manny Pacquiao (Philippines, boxing), Sebastian Vettel (Germany, motor racing)

Laureus World Sportswoman of the Year
Kim Clijsters (Belgium, tennis), Jessica Ennis (UK, athletics), Blanka Vlasic (Croatia, athletics), Lindsey Vonn (US, skiing), Serena Williams (US, tennis), Caroline Wozniacki (Denmark, tennis)

Laureus World Team of the Year
All Blacks (New Zealand, rugby), European Ryder Cup Team (golf), Inter Milan (Italy, football), Los Angeles Lakers (US, basketball), Red Bull Formula One Team (Austria), Spain World Cup Team (football)

Laureus World Breakthrough of the Year
Martin Kaymer (Germany, golf), Christophe Lemaitre (France, athletics), Matteo Manassero (Italy, golf), Thomas Muller (Germany, football), Louis Oosthuizen (S.Africa, golf), Teddy Tamgho (France, athletics)

Laureus World Comeback of the Year
Paula Creamer (US, golf), Tyson Gay (US, athletics), Justine Henin (Belgium, tennis), Carolina Kluft (Sweden, athletics), Merlene Ottey (Slovenia, athletics), Valentino Rossi (Italy, motor cycling)

Laureus World Sportsperson of the Year with a Disability
Verena Bentele (Germany, skiing/biathlon), Matt Cowdrey (Australia, swimming), Daniel Dias (Brazil, swimming), Jakub Krako (Slovakia, skiing), Esther Vergeer (Netherlands, wheelchair tennis), Lauren Woolstencroft (Canada, skiing)

Laureus World Action Sportsperson of the Year
Jamie Bestwick (UK, BMX), Victor Fernandez (Spain, windsurfing), Stephanie Gilmore (Australia, surfing), Levi Sherwood (N.Zealand, freestyle moto-cross), Kelly Slater (US, surfing), Shaun White (US, snowboarding)

To apply for accreditation for the 2011 Laureus World Sports Awards, go to www.laureus.com/accreditation
 

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