Overview
The biggest stars from the worlds of sports and entertainment gathered in downtown Los Angeles at the NOKIA Theatre L.A. LIVE to celebrate the best sports stories of the year at The 2009 ESPYs co-presented by Under Armour and Land Rover. Samuel L. Jackson entertained the all-star audience throughout the night with a humorous and creative performance that emphasized his passion for sports, including a musical performance "Take It Like A Fan" with Wyclef Jean. The 17th annual industry-wide sports celebration was televised on ESPN and ESPN HD Sunday, July 19 at 9 p.m. ET.
The ESPYs gather top celebrities from sports and entertainment to commemorate the past year in sports by recognizing major sports achievements, reliving unforgettable moments and saluting the leading performers and performances. The 2009 ESPYs included both sport-specific awards and distinguishing "Best in Sport" awards, categories that pit different sports against each other, such as Best Team or Best Male Athlete.
Michael Phelps broke Tiger Woods' five-year streak winning the Best Male Athlete ESPY, and took two more trophies home for Best US Olympian and the Best Championship Performance for becoming the first athlete to win eight gold medals in one Olympics. Winning his fifth straight ESPY for Best Golfer, Woods' win builds his record to 22, more than anyone in ESPYs history. The ESPYs are committed to the advancement of The V Foundation for Cancer Research, established by ESPN with the late Jim Valvano and announced at the inaugural ESPYs in 1993.
For the sixth consecutive year, fans determined the winners in all categories (except the Arthur Ashe Courage Award and other special awards) by voting online at www.espys.tv starting Thursday, June 25th.