A goat who is the first European winner of Euro 2016 has won a trophy at the prestigious Games.
The goat, who won the prestigious award in the final of the tournament for animal rights, was among four finalists to be recognised for his work.
In a statement the European Commission said the goat, named ‘Lone Ranger’ after his homeland, was “a brave, heroic animal who made history and helped animals and the environment.
He has become a symbol of courage, love and compassion”.”
This is the beginning of a new era for the goat,” said the European Commissioner for Animal Rights, Cecilia Malmström.
“This is a great achievement for the future of the animal welfare movement and we can’t wait to see what the goat’s legacy will be.”
The goat was nominated for the prize for the second year running and he was one of six nominees to be chosen.
The winner of the prize, named after a fictional character, was chosen in an online poll.
He won the coveted prize in the first round of voting by a margin of 2,096 to 1,892.
Lone Rangers is one of several goat winners to have won the prize.
Last year the winning goat was the goat of German animal rights group PETA.
Last year’s winner, named for his country of origin, was the “lone ranger” of the Hungarian goat farm Puma.
He was chosen for the fourth year running.
The winning goat’s journey was the subject of a BBC documentary last year, “Lone-ranger in Hungary”, which highlighted his journey from a herd of sheep to a herd in his native country.
The award, which was originally awarded to the winner of a game called “Pig” in 2014, was awarded for a work of conservation.
“We’ve been waiting for this award for years, but with this win we finally feel we have achieved the prize,” said Malmstrom.
“The prize is an incredible moment in animal rights history and it has been given to a goat who has been saving animals and protecting the environment for years.
This is a really great achievement, but we need to work hard on making sure we don’t forget that the prize is still for animals and animals will always be saved.”
The goats are being kept in a specially-designed barn at the World Dairy Expo in Brescia, Italy, the organisers of the event.
“This award recognises that animals are human beings, too, and that they are protected in the public domain,” said a spokesperson for the World Cheese Expo.
“All the goats will be housed in specially-built temporary enclosures in a special pen and will be fed fresh goat milk.
We hope that their lives will be immortalised in history as the winners of the award.”