Welsh rugby union player Shane Williams was declared as the Player of the Year by the International Rugby Board during the awards ceremony held in London recently.

Williams, who plays for Ospreys and Wales, bested other contenders in the award such as Scotland’s Mike Blair, Wales captain Ryan Jones, Italy captain Sergio Parisse and All Black fly-half player Dan Carter.

The wing player created a record as the first Welsh player to win the aforementioned award.

This year, the 31-year old athlete broke the team’s try-scoring record and prompted Wales to win several competitions this year, including a Grand Slam decider against team France.

Aside from this award, Williams got the RBS Six Nations Player of the Year title. Getting these accolades was overwhelming for him, considering he did not expect to get one.

“It’s the biggest honor you can get as an individual in rugby and it’s totally overwhelming,” Williams was quoted as saying.

“Just being nominated was humbling. And to receive the award from Bryan Habana, who is one of the best - if not the best - wing in the world means so much to me,” he added.