| Best Athlete with a Disability ESPY Award | |
|---|---|
| Awarded for | best disabled athlete |
| Location | Los Angeles (2004) |
| Presented by | ESPN |
| First award | 2002 |
| Final award | 2024 |
| Currently held by | Brenna Huckaby (USA) |
| Website | www |
TheBest Athlete with a Disability ESPY Award (sometimes called theOutstanding Athlete with a Disability ESPY Award) is an annual award honoring the achievements of an athlete from the world ofdisabled sports.[1] It was first presented as part of theESPY Awards at the 2002 edition as part of the ceremony's tenth anniversary of its establishment.[2] The Best Athlete with a Disability ESPY Award trophy, designed by sculptorLawrence Nowlan,[3] was presented to the disabled sportsperson adjudged to be the best at the annualESPY Awards ceremony inLos Angeles.[1] For the 2004 ceremony, the winner was chosen by online voting through choices selected by the ESPN Select Nominating Committee.[4] Before that, determination of the winners was made by an panel of experts.[5] Through the2001 iteration of the ESPY Awards, ceremonies were conducted in February of each year to honor achievements over the previous calendar year; awards presented thereafter are conferred in July and reflect performance from the June previous.[a][6]
The inaugural winner of the Best Athlete with a Disability ESPY Award at the 2002 edition was mountain climberErik Weihenmayer who has a totalvisual impairment and he became the first blind person to reach the summit ofMount Everest in May 2001.[2][7] He is one of three people to have won the award during its three-year history; sprinterMarlon Shirley won the accolade at the 2003 ceremony for becoming the first amputee in history to set a time below eleven seconds in themen's 100 metres at the Utah Summer Games,[8] andKyle Maynard was voted the winner of the award in the 2004 iteration because of his strong form infreestyle wrestling in high school despite being born withcongenital amputation that resulted in the shortening of all his limbs.[9] The Best Athlete with a Disability ESPY Award was discontinued and bifurcated by gender in2005 to establish theBest Male Athlete with a Disability ESPY Award and theBest Female Athlete with a Disability ESPY Award. The award was reinstated in2023.[10]
| Year | Image | Athlete | Nationality | Sport | Nominees | Refs |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2002 |  | Erik Weihenmayer |  USA | Mountain climbing | Stephen Pate (USA) –Wheelchair rugby Sarah Will ( USA) –Skiing | [2][11] |
| 2003 | – | Marlon Shirley | USA | Track and field | Paul Schulte (USA) –Wheelchair basketball Esther Vergeer (  NED) –Wheelchair tennis | [8][12] |
| 2004 |  | Kyle Maynard | USA | Freestyle wrestling | Cheri Blauwet (USA) –Wheelchair racing Travis Mohr ( USA) –SwimmingRon Williams ( USA) –Cycling | [9][13] |
| 2023 | – | Zach Miller | USA | Snowboarding | Erica McKee (USA) –Sledge hockey Aaron Pike ( USA) –Wheelchair racingSusannah Scaroni ( USA) –Wheelchair racing | [14] |
| 2024 | – | Brenna Huckaby | USA | Snowboarding | Jaydin Blackwell (USA) –Sprinter Ezra Frech ( USA) –Track and fieldOksana Masters ( USA) –Cross-country skiing | [15][16] |