The 2009 ESPY winners were only part of the 2009 ESPY show. The 2009 ESPY winners were already leaked before the 2009 ESPYs, since the show was taped before it aired last night. So the 2009 ESPY winners were no surprise to those who read the lists earlier. Host Samuel L. Jackson claimed that the 2009 ESPY were about the fans, since the fans chose who the 2009 ESPY winners were. Last night, their choices were made official on the broadcast.
The biggest winner of the 2009 ESPYs was the biggest winner from last summer, Michael Phelps. After winning eight gold medals, Phelps settled for just four ESPYs. Phelps ended Tiger Woods’ reign as Best Male Athlete, after Woods had won that ESPY five years in a row.
Of course, Woods made it a little easier by being unable to compete that much in the last year, and not winning a single major. Woods’ quest to take back that ESPY title didn’t get off to a good start with his missed cut at the British Open.
Michael Phelps was also a 2009 ESPY winner in Best Record-Breaking Performance, Best Championship Performance, and Best Male Olympian. But with no Olympics in 2009, Phelps will probably have a harder time repeating at the ESPYs in 2010, making the field a little more open next year.
Another Olympian that won big was Nastia Liukin, who won the Best Female Athlete ESPY for her gymnastics gold medal. The Olympics also triumphed in the Best Moment ESPY, for the shocking relay comeback early in the games that kept Phelps’ record-setting quest alive.
Some sports other than the Olympics made an impact on the 2009 ESPY winners list as well. The Los Angeles Lakers got named Best Team after winning their latest NBA championship, while the Pittsburgh-Arizona Super Bowl was named Best Game.
For Best Upset, the very late entry of the U.S. soccer team’s upset of Spain in the Confederations Cup won the prize. Albert Pujols, LeBron James, Larry Fitzgerald and Sidney Crosby won the best individual ESPY awards for their sport.
The 2009 ESPY winners were mostly just secondary to the show, and to gather all the biggest names in sports together. In that regard, the ESPYs are just the same as many other award shows, a feat they have achieved in just 17 years of existence.
The big difference is that the fans still get to vote for all the ESPY winners online, though not all of them may agree on the victors. But in all of the actual sports – except the BCS – the winners are still decided on the field.
Sources
Daily Contributor- “ESPY Awards 2009 Results: Phelps and Liukin named Best Athletes of the Year” dailycontributor.com/espy-awards-2009-results-phelps-and-liukin/6239/
Sports Examiner- “2009 ESPY Awards, winners and losers” www.examiner.com/x-426-Sports-Examiner~y2009m7d16-ESPY-Awards-2009-winners-and-losers
Bitten and Bound- “ESPY Awards 2009 Red Carpet and Winners List” www.bittenandbound.com/2009/07/16/espy-awards-2009-red-carpet-and-winners-list-photos/
