The German Olympic and Paralympic teams won an award at the German Sports Personality of the Year awards ©Getty Images

The German Olympic and Paralympic teams were the recipients of the Sparkasse Prize for Role Models in Sport.

The accolade was given during the German Sports Personality of the Year awards in Baden Baden.

Recipients of the prize are deemed to be role models for young athletes and society, not only because of their sporting success, but also because of their demeanour. 

Winners of the Sparkasse Prize for Role Models in Sport receive €40,000 (£36,100/$48,800) in prize money. 

It was decided to distribute the prize money to the German Disabled Sports Association (DBS) and German Olympic Sports Confederation (DOSB) "#SupportYourSport" initiative. 

Sparkasse offers banking services across Germany. 

German Paralympic athletes were credited as being role models to society ©Getty Images
German Paralympic athletes were credited as being role models to society ©Getty Images

"In 2020, many sporting hopes were dashed because training sessions and competitions could not take place," said Sparkasse President Helmut Schleweis.

"But we have seen that the athletes from Team Germany have a lot of 'sportsmanship for society'. 

"Masks were sewn, shopping for seniors was done, and training times were made possible for the youngsters. 

"It is precisely this social force of sport that we support."

It was also announced that Sparkasse would extend its partnership with the DBS and DOSB until 2024.