The Sports Humanitarian of the Year Award is given to an athlete whose continuous, demonstrated leadership has created a positive impact on their community through sports. The honoree will receive a $75,000 grant (and $25,000 grant for each of the three finalists) from ESPN’s Corporate Citizenship department to advance the impact of the charity related to the award-winning humanitarian efforts. Both WWE and John Cena have picked up a nomination for this years award ceremony.
The inaugural Sports Humanitarian of the Year Awards, presented by ESPN and PlayStation, will celebrate and honor athletes, teams, nonprofits and members of the sports industry for using sport to serve communities and make a positive impact on society, it was announced by John Skipper, President, ESPN. The event, which will take place Tuesday, July 14 at the Conga Room at L.A. Live, will be the first of its kind, bringing together the leagues and sporting community to pay tribute to the collective good of sports.
Nominations: (See the rest of the nominee’s here)
John Cena (WWE): WWE Superstar John Cena’s popular catchphrase “Never Give Up” is also a real-life mantra that he uses to inspire those battling life-threatening illnesses. For more than a decade, Cena has been a force in granting the wishes of children in partnership with Make-A-Wish. As the most requested wish granter of all-time, he has granted nearly 500 wishes for children around the world. Additionally, Cena is also a passionate advocate in the fight against breast cancer, helping to spread the word about the importance of early detection.
WWE Community Relations: WWE leverages the power of its brand and platforms to help address important social issues worldwide, and through its partnerships, they support programs and initiatives that positively impact children and families around the world. WWE has granted more than 6,000 wishes to children with life-threatening medical conditions through Make-A-Wish, and launched an anti-bullying program, Be a STAR, to encourage young people to treat each other with tolerance and respect through education and grassroots initiatives. More than 100,000 kids from all 50 U.S. states and 100 countries have taken the pledge to end bullying through the program. WWE is also a strong advocate for athletes with intellectual disabilities and breast cancer awareness through their work with Special Olympics and Susan G. Komen respectively, and they are staunch supporters of the U.S. military through their annual Tribute to the Troops celebration and partnership with Hire Heroes USA to help returning vets transition to the civilian workforce.
Best of luck to WWE and John Cena from everyone at TWM on this fantastic award nomination!