25th Annual ESPY Awards to honor top athletes on Wednesday

Mrs. Obama to posthumously recognize Eunice Kennedy Shriver

LOS ANGELES, CA - JULY 13: (L-R) Honorees Peyton Manning, Abby Wambach and Kobe Bryant accept the Icon Award onstage during the 2016 ESPYS at Microsoft Theater on July 13, 2016 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images)

SAN ANTONIO – The 25th annual ESPYs Awards can be be viewed on ABC at 8 p.m. and will be hosted by former NFL quarterback Peyton Manning.

New Patriots quarterback Tom Brady, tennis star Serena Williams, Olympic champion Simone Biles and NBA star LeBron James are among the many top athletes nominated.

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The Chicago Cubs, The New England Patriots, the Golden State Warriors, the Pittsburgh Penguins, the Clemson Tigers and the USA Olympic gymnastic team were chosen as an impressive field for best team of 2016.

San Antonio Spurs star Kawhi Leonard is in the running for best NBA player.

ESPN has chosen Michelle Obama to help posthumously honor Special Olympics founder Eunice Kennedy Shriver.

The former first lady is presenting the Arthur Ashe Courage Award to Shriver's son, Timothy Shriver, during the broadcast.

Timothy Shriver chairs the Special Olympics, a sporting event his mother founded in the late 1960s to help empower people with intellectual disabilities.

Mrs. Obama says in a statement that Eunice Shriver's work to promote their inclusion and acceptance was inspiring and changed the lives of countless young athletes.

Eunice Kennedy Shriver died in 2009. Her sister, Rosemary, was intellectually disabled.

The courage award is given annually to someone who embodies the spirit of its namesake, tennis legend and longtime human rights campaigner Arthur Ashe.

Here's a look at the full-nominee list for the 2017 ESPYs:

Best Male Athlete

Sidney Crosby, NHL
Michael Phelps, Swimming
Kris Bryant, MLB
Russell Westbrook, NBA

Best Female Athlete

Simone Biles, Gymnastics
Katie Ledecky, Swimming
Candace Parker, WNBA
Serena Williams, Tennis

Best Championship Performance

Tom Brady, Super Bowl
Kevin Durant, NBA Finals
Shay Knighten, WCWS
Deshaun Watson, CFB National Championship

Best Breakthrough Athlete

Giannis Antetokounmpo, NBA
Laurie Hernandez, Gymnastics
Aaron Judge, MLB
Dak Prescott, NFL
Christian Pulisic, Soccer

Best Record-Breaking Performance

Bill Belichick most Super Bowl wins by a head coach
Michael Phelps extends his own record of most gold medals/most Olympic medals
Diana Taurasi breaks WNBA career scoring record
Russell Westbrook most triple doubles in a season

Best Upset

Clemson defeats Alabama, CFB National Championship
Denis Istomin over Novak Djokovic, Australian Open 2nd Round
Mississippi State defeats Connecticut, Women's NCAA Basketball Final Four

Best Game

Cubs vs. Indians, World Series Game 7
Patriots vs. Falcons, Super Bowl
Federer vs. Nadal, Australian Open Final

Best Comeback Athlete

Matt Bush, MLB
Roger Federer, Tennis
Jordy Nelson, NFL
Candace Parker, WNBA

Best Play

Julian Edelman Super Bowl catch vs. 16. Noah Brown TD catch around defender
Morgan Williams buzzer beater vs. UConn vs.15. Larry Nance dunk
Aaron Rodgers to Jared Cook vs. 14. Lamar Jackson hurdles defender
Northwestern buzzer beater vs. 13. Edwin Encarnacion walk off HR
Russell Westbrook buzzer beater vs. 12. LeBron James dunk off the backboard
Chris Coghlan leaps over catcher vs. 11. Sidney Crosby one-handed goal
Olivier Giroud scorpion kick goa l vs. 10. Warriors jump ball transition dunk
Mario Mandzukic goal in UEFA Final vs. 9. Jarrod Dyson catch

Best Team

Chicago Cubs, MLB
Clemson Tigers, CFB
Golden State Warriors, NBA
Pittsburgh Penguins, NHL
New England Patriots, NFL
South Carolina Gamecocks, Women's NCAA Basketball
US Women's Gymnastics

Best International Athlete

Canelo Alvarez, Boxing
Usain Bolt, Track & Field
Katinka Hosszu, Swimming
Conor McGregor, MMA
Cristiano Ronaldo, Soccer

Best NFL Player

Tom Brady, New England Patriots
Ezekiel Elliott, Dallas Cowboys
Khalil Mack, Oakland Raiders
Aaron Rodgers, Green Bay Packers
Matt Ryan, Atlanta Falcons

Best MLB Player

Kris Bryant, Chicago Cubs
David Ortiz, Boston Red Sox
Rick Porcello, Boston Red Sox
Max Scherzer, Washington Nationals
Mike Trout, Los Angeles Angels

Best NHL Player

Sergei Bobrovsky, Columbus Blue Jackets
Sidney Crosby, Pittsburgh Penguins
Patrick Kane, Chicago Blackhawks
Auston Matthews, Toronto Maple Leafs
Connor McDavid, Edmonton Oilers

Best Driver

Ron Capps, NHRA
Lewis Hamilton, Formula One
Jimmie Johnson, NASCAR
Simon Pagenaud, IndyCar
Martin Truex Jr., NASCAR

Best NBA Player

Kevin Durant, Golden State Warriors
James Harden, Houston Rockets
LeBron James, Cleveland Cavaliers
Kawhi Leonard, San Antonio Spurs
Russell Westbrook, Oklahoma City Thunder

Best WNBA Player

Tina Charles, New York Liberty
Elena Delle Donne, Washington Mystics
Maya Moore, Minnesota Lynx
Nneka Ogwumike, Los Angeles Sparks
Candace Parker, Los Angeles Sparks

Best Fighter

Terence Crawford, Boxing
Gennady Golovkin, Boxing
Demetrious Johnson, MMA
Conor McGregor, MMA
Andre Ward, Boxing

Best Male Golfer

Brooks Koepka
Sergio Garcia
Dustin Johnson
Rory McIlroy
Henrik Stenson

Best Female Golfer

In Gee Chun
Ariya Jutanugarn
Lydia Ko
So Yeon Ryu
Lexi Thompson

Best Male Tennis Player

Roger Federer
Andy Murray
Rafael Nadal
Stan Wawrinka

Best Female Tennis Player

Angelique Kerber
Jelena Ostapenko
Monica Puig
Serena Williams

Best Male College Athlete

Ian Harkes, Wake Forest soccer
Frank Mason, Kansas basketball
Matt Rambo, Maryland lacrosse
Zain Retherford, Penn State wrestling
DeShaun Watson, Clemson football

Best Female College Athlete

Inky Ajanaku, Stanford volleyball
Kelly Barnhill, Florida softball
Kadeisha Buchanan, West Virginia soccer
Kelsey Plum, Washington basketball
Zoe Stukenberg, Maryland lacrosse

Best Male Action Sports Athlete

Oystein Braaten (NOR), Ski
John John Florence, Surf
Nyjah Huston, Skateboard
Mark McMorris, Snowboard

Best Female Action Sports Athlete

Lacey Baker, Skateboard
Anna Gasser, Snowboard
Kelly Sildaru, Ski
Tyler Wright, Surf

Best Jockey

Javier Castellano
Mike E. Smith
John Velasquez

Best Male Athlete With a Disability

Will Groulx, Cycling
Mike Minor, Snowboarding
Steve Serio, Wheelchair Basketball
Brad Snyder, Swimming
Roderick Townsend, Track and Field

Best Female Athlete With a Disability

Oksana Masters, Nordic Skiing
Tatyana McFadden, Track and Field
Becca Meyers, Swimming
Shawn Morelli, Cycling
Grace Norman, Triathlon

Best Bowler

Jason Belmonte
Francois Lavoie
EJ Tackett

Best MLS Player

Andre Blake, Philadelphia Union
Stefan Frei, Seattle Sounders FC
Matt Hedges, FC Dallas
David Villa, New York City FC
Bradley Wright-Phillips, New York Red Bulls

Best Male US Olympic Athlete

Ashton Eaton, Decathlon
Ryan Murphy, Swimming
Michael Phelps, Swimming
Kyle Snyder, Wrestling

Best Female US Olympic Athlete

Simone Biles, Gymnastics
Allyson Felix, Track & Field
Katie Ledecky, Swimming
Simone Manuel, Swimming


About the Author:

Ben Spicer is a digital journalist who works the early morning shift for KSAT.