Prince William and Prince Harry appear separately at 'joint' event for Diana Award winners

Prince William and Prince Harry recently held a "joint" event for the winners of the Diana Award, but stayed apart throughout the entire ceremony.

The legacy awards , which are handed out every two years, was introduced by The Diana Award in 2017, the 20th anniversary of Princess Diana's death, to celebrate her life and honour young people who work to improve the lives of others. William and Harry had together presented the inaugural awards at St James's Palace in 2017.

This year's recipients of the legacy award, chosen by an independent judging panel chaired by the late royal's brother Charles Spencer, would be honoured in a ceremony hosted by him at their ancestral home Althorp House on December 9. Ahead of the ceremony, the winners coming from across the UK, Taiwan, Colombia, Germany, India, Indonesia, Saudi Arabia, and the US were invited for a meeting with Diana's sons William and Harry, reports Mail Online.

However, the royal siblings did not come together for the occasion, and held meetings with two separate groups of winners. The Duke of Cambridge held a face-to-face meeting with the winners from the UK at Kensington Palace, while his younger brother spoke to other winners in a live video meeting from his home in California.

Tessy Ojo, chief executive of The Diana Award, said that this year's awards are honouring young people who are standing up to shape change in their communities across the world while the coronavirus pandemic continues to disrupt lives and exacerbate social inequalities.

"Their compassion, determination and agency to make positive change today and in the years ahead is immense. They couldn't be a more fitting tribute and lasting legacy to Diana, Princess of Wales and her belief that young people have the power to change the world," Ojo said.

Earlier this year, William had praised the work the young people are doing amid the pandemic in a poignant foreword he wrote for The Diana Award's Future Forward plan. He had said, "Organisations like The Diana Award have never been more important in nurturing the talent of young people and working with them to change the world for the better by celebrating their successes; creating opportunities for growth; and ensuring that young people have a seat at the table."