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Olympic swimmer Katie Ledecky won the Best Female Athlete award at the 2022 ESPY Awards held in Los Angeles on July 20, 2022. The seven-time Olympic gold medalist was one of several Olympian athletes awarded that night.
The award ceremony came a few weeks after Katie Ledecky made headlines for clinching four gold medals at the 2022 World Championship in Budapest. During her acceptance speech, the swimmer thanked ESPN and everyone who voted for her. She also expressed her gratitude towards her parents, teammates and coach:
"Ive been very lucky that through every stage of my swimming career from age six ...to high school swimming, club swimming, swimming at Stanford and now swimming with coach Nesty and my great teammates... They' ve all been there every step of the way and the best support system."
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Furthermore, while encouraging others to take up swimming, she said:
"I represent one of the few sports that is also a really important life skill so I want to encourage all the parents here anyone watching to make sure your kids learn how to swim."
Katie Ledecky ended her speech with a message for young athletes, encouraging them to keep hoping and persevering in their journey "for the gold."
Katie Ledecky inspires young athletes in her 2022 ESPY Awards speech
After thanking everyone who has been pivotal to her success, Ledecky drew her speech to a close with an uplifting message for young athletes. Speaking about the importance of finding something that one is passionate about, the swimmer said:
"I want to say to all the young athletes out there, young kids, adults - Find something you really love, you are good at that can be a positive force in our world. Something that can inspire somebody and help somebody else. Anything that can change our world."
Katie Ledecky then went on to motivate upcoming athletes and ended her speech by saying:
"I think there are so many heroes not just in sports but all around us, some we are honouring here tonight so look at those people as role models and go for the gold."
Prior to Katie Ledecky, Naomi Osaka was awarded the trophy for Best Female Athlete in 2021.
Other details about the 2022 ESPY Awards
Undoubtedly the most decorated female swimmer in the world, Katie Ledecky is often considered to be the female version of Michael Phelps. She currently stands with 10 Olympic medals and 22 World Championship medals, a number unsurpassed by any female swimmer.
The 25-year-old was picked for the award over other nominees that included gymnast Suni Lee, WNBA star Candace Parker, and Ukrainian Paralympic superstar Oksana Masters.
Suni Lee scripted history by becoming the first Hmong American Olympic gymnast to win the all-round gold medal at the Tokyo Olympics. In June 2022, Candace Parker became the first player in WNBA league history to reach 6000 points. Paralympic superstar Oksana Masters has won multiple Paralympic medals, the most recent being two gold medals in women's para-cycling in Tokyo.
The 2022 ESPY Awards also marked the first time that Paralympians were nominated for the Best Athlete category.
The awards were hosted by four-time NBA winner Stephen Curry, who was also named the best NBA player. Olympic champions Celeb Dressel, Klay Thompson, and Ailing Gu were also honored at the event. Los Angeles Angels star baseball pitcher Shohei Ohtani took home the Best Athlete Award in the men's sports category.
