Laureus Sport for Good Foundation

The [http://www.laureus.com/ Laureus Sport for Good Foundation] was founded in 2000 by Daimler and Richemont and is supported by its Global Partners [http://www3.mercedes-benz.com/international_home/en/index.php Mercedes-Benz] , [http://www.iwc.com/ IWC Schaffhausen] and [http://www.vodafone.com/ Vodafone] . It celebrates the universal power of sport to bring people together as a force for good and uses the passion that sport inspires to effect social change across the globe.

The Laureus Sport for Good Foundation is an apolitical charitable initiative that uses the positive influence of sport to tackle society's most pressing challenges around the globe, supporting projects on every continent. [http://www.laureus.com Laureus] was created by people who believe sport can change the world. Among these is the Patron of Laureus, Nelson Mandela, who in 2000 uttered the words which have become the raison d'être of Laureus. He said: 'Sport has the power to change the world. It has the power to inspire. It has the power to unite people in a way that little else does. Sport can awaken hope where was previously only despair'. Founded with the support of Daimler and Richemont, Laureus is composed of three core elements: the Laureus Sport for Good Foundation, the Laureus World Sports Awards and the Laureus World Sports Academy. Collectively they celebrate the extraordinary achievements of athletes past and present and harness the power of sport to promote social change.

The ultimate aim of [http://www.laureus.com Laureus] is to support the work of the Laureus Sport for Good Foundation and highlight its worldwide mission to utilise the power of sport to address social challenges through a worldwide programme of sports related community development initiatives, using sport as a tool for socail change. The Foundation is active every day, promoting and supporting initiatives that use sport as the means to get children off the streets, away from crime and juvenile delinquency, off drugs, back into schools and working towards positive, productive lives. projects tackle a range of social issues: from gang violence in the United States and Hong Kong to poverty in India; slum degradation in Kenya and Brazil to the HIV/Aids epidemic in Uganda.

Members of the Laureus World Sports Academy and Laureus Friends & Ambassadors are at work year-round, planning, implementing and overseeing the Foundation's charity operations across the globe. As Edwin Moses, Chairman of the Laureus World Sports Academy, says: 'Everyone at Laureus shares a common belief that sport is a universal language which has the power to speak to people across the globe, whatever their colour or creed.'