“It’s an honor to receive such a prestigious award, and to be among some of the greatest athletes the world has ever seen! I want to thank everyone that rallied and voted for me; I’m very fortunate to have so much support. Without it, I would never have been able to live my dream and pursue snowboarding. I’ve been snowboarding for over 15 years now, and it’s been so awesome to see my dedication and perseverance finally paying off. These past few years have been very good to me and I’m excited for what the future holds!” – Zach Miller after ESPY Award win.
The Excellence in Sports Performance Yearly Awards (ESPYS) recognized the best athletes in the world on Wednesday night, and this year proved to be a good one for winter sports. In addition to Mikaela Shiffrin’s win for Best Women’s Sports Athlete, fellow American Zach Miller took home the prize for Best Athlete with a Disability. This is the first time since the mid-2000s that this category was nominated as mixed-gender. Miller joins previous men’s winner Mike Schultz and women’s winner Brenna Huckaby as the only snowboarders to secure a win in this category.
“We are so excited for Zach for taking home an ESPY Award tonight. Just recently, we re-introduced Para under our wing at U.S. Ski & Snowboard and it’s athletes like Zach that make me so excited for the future. What an incredible win tonight for him and the team—I can’t wait to see what’s next!” – Sophie Goldschmidt, President and CEO of U.S. Ski & Snowboard.
Congratulations to Zach Miller and the other ESPY Award winners! With a stellar career still ongoing, we can’t wait to see what next season has in store for you!
Photos and Video Courtesy of Zach Miller and the US Para Snowboard Team