Swimming champion Natalie Du Toit has won the annual Laureus Disability award, the South African Sports Confederation and Olympic Committee (SASCOC) says.
SASCOC president, Gideon Sam, said Du Toit, who lost her leg after a motorbike accident in 2001, had done South Africa proud over the years.
She is one of just five athletes to have competed in the Paralympics and Olympics, after swimming in both events in Beijing in 2008.
"All South Africans can be proud of her spirit and her never-say-die attitude."
The Springbok rugby side was nominated in the Team of the Year category but lost out to the Formula One rivals, Brawn Racing GP outfit.
"The mere fact that they were nominated means that the spotlight is still shining bright on our sports stars," Sam said.
Jamaican super-sprinter, Usain Bolt, won his second Laureus Sportsman of the Year award and American tennis player, Serena Williams, won the women's prize.
