A Celebration of Sports

July 21, 2008 – Stars and athletes hit up the 2008 ESPY Awards at the NOKIA Theatre in Los Angeles, California last week and the event was televised last night on ESPN.

Self-proclaimed sports junkie Justin Timberlake hosted the show and earned raves from the athletes and the viewers.  Charming, irreverant and sexy as ever, when the Best Moment Award was given to members of the Central WA Softball Team for incredible sportsmanship, JT was fittingly carried off by university softball players.

Among the awards presented at the 2008 ESPYS:
Best Female Athlete/Best Female College Athlete: Candace Parker
Best Moment: Central Washington vs. Western Oregon Softball
Best Coach-Manager: Pat Summitt
Best Female International Athlete: Lorena Ochoa
Best WNBA Player: Lauren Jackson (Seattle Storm)
Best Female Action Sports Athlete: snowboarder Gretchen Bleiler
Best Female Tennis Player: Maria Sharapova 

Recognizing major sports achievements, the ESPYs are determined by fans who vote online.

Girls gunning for ESPY Awards

July 3, 2008 - In the midst of all that’s happening this month,  the annual ESPY Awards will take place in LA to honor the coolest & best star athletes and memorable moments from the past year.

Nominees for the 16th annual ESPYs, which will be televised July 20 were announced this week in 37 categories. Votes — there were 12.5 million last year — can be sent in online or via mobile phone.

Major nods this year for Best Female Athlete include Danica Patrick (also a presenter), golfer Lorena Ochoa, baller Candace Parker and skier Lindsey Vonn.

Among the nominations for best moment are Danica Patrick’s win of the Indy Japan 300; and the Central Washington University’s sportsmanship when members of the team carried Western Oregon University’s Sara Tucolsky around the bases after she collapsed in a playoff game.  

In case you missed the latter, Tucolsky hit her very first home run ever only to come up lame going around first. Since rules state that if any teammate touches you on the base path you are automatically out, the other team picked her up and carried her around the base path so her first home run would count.

Women’s Motocross multi-time National Champion Jessica Patterson has also been nominated for a 2008 ESPY award in the Female Action Sports category. The 25-year-old racer dominated the 2007 AMA/WMA Women’s Motocross National Championship winning an impressive 10 out of 12 motos and the title.

Other nominations in the category include: Snowboarders Gretchen Bleiler and Lindsey Jacobellis, and Surfer Stephanie Gilmore. Steph – btw- has the honor of being the only professional surfer, male or female, to be nominated for any ESPY award in 2008. In 2007, she was not only the first surfer (male or female) to ever win an ASP World Title their rookie year, but she also scalped 4 out of 8 event victories on the elite ASP Women’s World Tour.

The ESPYS, Excellence in Sports Performance, is a premier sports awards event, put on by ESPN, that honors individual and team athletic achievements and other sports-related performances each year. Other gals nominated for 2008 awards include Allyson Felix, Serena Williams, Venus Williams, Rachel Dawson, Justine Henin, Pat Summitt, Diana Taurasi, Angela Tincher and more.

This year’s event will be hosted by Justin Timberlake (not exactly sure why but hey – we love him) and take place July 16th at the Nokia Theatre. The winner of each category is decided by fan votes,  so visit www.espys.tv to cast your ballot. Voting continues through July 12th and fans of women’s sports are encouraged to vote for their fave female athlete. Lets give the girls the recognition they deserve!