After a jam-packed, crazy sports year, ESPN had no shortage of amazing moments to choose from for its annual ESPY Awards. This year’s nominees feature some of the most popular athletes in the world.
Per a press release provided to The Root, brand new NBA Finals MVP Steph Curry is up for Best Athlete, Men’s Sports alongside Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers; history making Los Angeles Angels star Shohei Ohtani and perennial NHL highlight Connor McDavid.
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Look no further than the Best Athlete, Women’s Sports category for a clear example of how amazing women have been across every aspect of the sports world. Olympic gold medal winning gymnast Suni Lee; Paralympic gold medalist Oksana Masters, record-breaking swimmer Katie Ledecky and WNBA champion Candace Parker are all awesome and should just share the award, because none of these women deserve to lose.
With COVID-19 delaying the Tokyo Olympics to 2021, the Best Olympian categories feature both summer and winter athletes competing against one another. Lee, Masters and Ledecky are joined by track and field legend Allyson Felix in Best Olympian, Women’s Sports.
Felix is also nominated for Best Record-Breaking Performance for winning her eleventh Olympic medal, the most every by a U.S. track and field athlete. She’s up against college softball star Jocelyn Alo, who holds the record for the most homeruns in Division I history; some football guy named Tom Brady and Steph, who is nominated for becoming the NBA’s all-time three-pointer record holder. Brady or Steph is probably going to win this one, but let’s shock the world and vote for Allyson Felix and Jocelyn Alo. Those guys have plenty of trophies.
Championship winners Golden State Warriors, NBA; Chicago Sky, WNBA; Atlanta Braves, MLB; Los Angeles Rams, NFL; Oklahoma Sooners, NCAA Softball; Georgia Bulldogs, NCAA Football and Colorado Avalanche, NHL are all up for Best Team. Honestly, it’s going to be the Warriors or the Rams, because it’s almost always the NFL or NBA team, but if the award is really about domination, the obvious choice is Oklahoma softball.
Voting is now open for The 2022 ESPYS and runs through Sunday, July 17 at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT.
The 2022 ESPY Awards air Wednesday, July 20 at 8/7c on ABC.
Notable ESPY Award nominees:
BEST ATHLETE, MEN’S SPORTS
Stephen Curry, Golden State Warriors
Aaron Rodgers, Green Bay Packers
Shohei Ohtani, Los Angeles Angels
Connor McDavid, Edmonton Oilers
BEST ATHLETE, WOMEN’S SPORTS
Oksana Masters, Cross Country Skiing, Road Cycling, Biathlon
Sunisa Lee, Gymnastics
Katie Ledecky, Swimming
Candace Parker, Chicago Sky
BEST BREAKTHROUGH ATHLETE
Trinity Rodman, Washington Spirit
Eileen Gu, Skier
Jonathan Taylor, Indianapolis Colts
Ja Morant, Memphis Grizzlies
BEST RECORD-BREAKING PERFORMANCE
Stephen Curry passes Ray Allen for most 3-pointers made in NBA history
Jocelyn Alo breaks Lauren Chamberlain’s home run record for most in Division I history (96)
Allyson Felix, Track & Field won her 11th career medal surpassing Carl Lewis for the United States track and field record
Tom Brady becomes the NFL all-time passing yards leader overtaking Drew Brees
BEST CHAMPIONSHIP PERFORMANCE
Cooper Kupp, Los Angeles Rams – Super Bowl LVI
Julianna Peña, UFC 269
Max Verstappen, F1 – Abu Dhabi Grand Prix
Cale Makar, Colorado Avalanche – Stanley Cup Finals
BEST COMEBACK ATHLETE
Klay Thompson, Golden State Warriors
Trey Mancini, Baltimore Orioles
Diamond DeShields, Phoenix Mercury
Joe Burrow, Cincinnati Bengals
BEST PLAY
Unbelievable Corner Kick Goal by Megan Rapinoe
Justin Tucker 66-yard NFL record field goal
Ja Morant’s POSTER
Hansel Enmanuel with the play of the year
BEST TEAM
Golden State Warriors, NBA
Chicago Sky, WNBA
Atlanta Braves, MLB
Los Angeles Rams, NFL
Oklahoma Sooners, NCAA Softball
Georgia Bulldogs, NCAA Football
Colorado Avalanche, NHL
BEST OLYMPIAN, WOMEN’S SPORTS
Sunisa Lee, Gymnastics
Oksana Masters, Cross Country Skiing, Road Cycling, Biathlon
Katie Ledecky, Swimming
Allyson Felix, Track & Field
BEST OLYMPIAN, MEN’S SPORTS
Nathan Chen, Figure Skating
Declan Farmer, Sled Hockey
Nick Mayhugh, Track & Field
Caeleb Dressel, Swimming
BEST GAME
Kansas City Chiefs defeat the Buffalo Bills in an OT thriller (AFC Divisional Game)
UConn defeats NC State in double OT (Elite 8 NCAA Women’s Basketball)
Kansas’ 16-point rally, which was the biggest comeback in championship game history (NCAA Men’s Basketball Championship)
Bryce Young rallies Alabama to beat Auburn in four OTs (NCAA Football Iron Bowl)
Straight From 
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