Written by Giavanna Foster

Every year, the ESPY Awards recognizes true excellence in sports performances from today’s rising athletes. Tennis champion Naomi Osaka and professional snowboarder Chloe Kim scored nominations for the 2019 ESPY Awards.
Here’s the scoop:

Naomi Osaka is this year’s leading nominee, as she is nominated in multiple categories. A tennis champion, Osaka is nominated for Best Breakthrough Athlete and Best Female Tennis Player. Also, her victorious 2018 U.S. Open match against Serena Williams is nominated for Best Upset.

Chloe Kim is one of the youngest nominees at the 2019 ESPY Awards. A snowboarding champion, Kim is nominated for Best Female Action Sports Athlete. At the 2019 X Games in Aspen, Kim received the Women’s Halfpipe gold medal. Kim received three awards at the 2018 ESPYs for Best Female Athlete, Best Female Olympian, and Best Female Action Sports Athlete.

Here is the list of the official 2019 ESPY Awards nominees:

Best Bowler
Jason Belmonte
Jakob Butturff
Norm Duke
Anthony Simonsen

Best Breakthrough Athlete
Saquon Barkley
Naomi Osaka
Christian Yelich
Trae Young

Best College Athlete
Rachel Garcia
Sabrina Ionescu
Kyler Murray
Zion Williamson

Best Driver
Kyle Busch
Scott Dixon
Lewis Hamilton
Steve Torrence

Best Female Action Sports Athlete
Stephanie Gilmore
Chloe Kim
Zoi Sadowski-Synnott
Kelly Sildaru

Best Female Athlete
Simone Biles
Alex Morgan
Mikaela Shriffin
Breanna Stewart

Best Female Athlete with a Disability
Oksana Masters
Tatyana McFadden
Shawn Morelli
Allysa Seely

Best Female Tennis Player
Simona Halep
Petra Kvitová
Naomi Osaka
Serena Williams

Best Game
Texas A&M defeats LSU, 74-72, after seven overtimes
Los Angeles Rams defeat Kansas City Chiefs, 54-51, Monday Night Football
Notre Dame defeats UConn, 81-76, 2019 NCAA Women’s Final Four

Best Male Action Sports Athlete
Nyjah Huston
Scotty James
Gabriel Medina
Tom Pages

Best Male Athlete
Mookie Betts
Brooks Koepka
Patrick Mahomes
Giannis Antetokounmpo

Best Men’s International Soccer Player
Kylian Mbappe
Lionel Messi
Cristiano Ronaldo
Virgil Van Dijk

Best Men’s Tennis Player
Novak Djokovic
Roger Federer
Rafael Nadal
Stefanos Tsitsipas

Best MLB Player
Mookie Betts
Jacob DeGrom
Blake Snell
Christian Yelich

Best MLS Player
Zlatan Ibrahimovic
Josef Martìnez
Aaron Long
Wayne Rooney

Best MMA Fighter
Israel Adesanya
Henry Cejudo
Daniel Cormier
Amanda Nunes

Best NBA Player
Diannis Abtetokounmpo
Kevin Durant
Paul George
James Harden

Best NFL Player
Drew Brees
Aaron Donald
Todd Gurley
Patrick Mahomes

Best NHL Player
Nikita Kucherov
Connor McDavid
Nathan McKinnon
Alexander Ovechkin

Best Play (Elimination Format)
1. Miracle in Miami (advanced to Round 2)
2. Kawhi Leonard’s game-winning buzzer-beater; the Toronto Raptors advanced to the Eastern Conference finals (advanced to Round 2)
3. Derrick Henry’s NFL record tying 99-yard touchdown
(advanced to Round 2)
4. Wayne Rooney single-handedly won a game for DC United
5. Former gymnast Katelyn Ohashi’s Perfect 10 score
(advanced to Round 2)
6. Andrew Benintendi calls game
7. Damian Lillard’s buzzer-beater sends Portland Trail Blazers in the Western Conference playoffs (advanced to Round 2)
8. Midlothian, Virginia QB Brendon Clark throws a 48-yard touchdown pass to Kevin Henderson that popped behind his opponent’s head
9. Texas Tech wide receiver T.J. Vasher does best impression of
Odell Beckham Jr. (advanced to Round 2)

Best Record-Breaking Performance
1. Matthew Boling breaks national high school record: boys’ 100 meter dash.
2. Drew Brees surpasses Peyton Manning’s 71,940 NFL passing yards on Monday Night Football. (He broke Brett Favre’s completion record.)
3. Sabrina Ionescu scores her 13th triple double in her NCAA career. She is the current record holder for most triple doubles in NCAA history.
4. Klay Thompson scores fourteen 3-point field goals in a NBA game, breaks Stephen Curry’s previous record.

Best Team
Boston Red Sox – MLB
Clemson Tigers – NCAAF
New England Patriots – NFL
Toronto Raptors – NBA
Baylor Bears – NCAA women’s basketball
Virginia Cavaliers – NCAA men’s basketball
U.S. Women’s National Team – soccer

Best Upset
1. Columbus Blue Jackets sweeps top-seeded Tampa Bay Lightning in
round one of the 2019 Stanley Cup playoffs
2. Old Dominion football team defeats #13 Virginia Tech football team
3. Naomi Osaka beats Serena Williams at the 2018 U.S. Open
4. Andy Ruiz Jr. defeats Anthony Joshua in a heavyweight boxing title fight

Best Viral Moment
1. Rudolph Ingram, seven-year-old track and field phenom
2. Infinite Tucker lunges for the gold at the Big 12 Championships
3. Former gymnast Katelyn Ohashi scores a perfect 10
4. Sister Mary Jo’s curveball first pitch at a Chicago White Sox game

Best WWE Moment
1. Roman Reigns returns to action after recurrence of leukemia
2. Becky Lynch wins Raw and Smackdown Women’s titles
(WrestleMania 35’s main event)
3. Kofi Kingston wins the WWE Championship
after 11 years at WrestleMania 35
4. Ronda Rousey wins the Raw Women’s title at Summerslam

Best WNBA Player
Elena Delle Donne
Candace Parker
Breanna Stewart
Diana Taurasi

The 2019 ESPY Awards will take place on July 10, 2019 at 5:00 PM PST at the Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles, California. The 2019 ESPY Awards will air live on ABC at 8:00PM EST. Tracy Morgan will host this year’s ESPY Awards.