The SKG Gr.A.N. Parma flanker took 13,000 votes to become the first sporting personality to ever win the award.

De Rossi led Italy in the last RBS 6 Nations, a competition in which they defeated Scotland to avoid the wooden spoon.

Im very happy to win it. This will be important for the Italian Rugby movement and not only for myself, De Rossi said.

The president of Italian rugby, Gianfranco Dondi, also congratulated De Rossi on his achievement.

We know De Rossi was in the running for the Icaro Trophy. I have known De Rossi since he was a boy and now he plays for the team of my city, Parma. He is a person with a high technical level of rugby, and the Italian Rugby Federation (FIR) is very proud of De Rossi and his award, Dondi said.

Italian coach John Kirwan also praised De Rossi, saying it was a special achievement for a sportsman to win a cultural trophy.

This is good for our movement. If you think a cultural trophy which has nothing to do with the sporting side has been awarded to our captain, it makes me very very happy, Kirwan said.

This is great for our Rugby Federation and an excellent achievement for De Rossi. He is a a terrific rugby player and a true Italian captain who has a fantastic relationship with his team-mates.