Queen of Sports

Athletes Attend 2011 SI Sportsman Of The Year Award Presentation

We told you yesterday that Pat Summitt and Mike Krzyzewski were named the 2011 Sports Illustrated Sportsman and Sportswoman of the Year.

Last night in New York City, an award presentation honoring the two college coaches was held with many athletes, SI models, and former winners of the award in attendance. The honorees, pictured above with Time Inc. Sports Group editor Terry McDonell, are the winningest coaches in men’s and women’s college basketball.

Former Sportswoman of the Year and tennis player Chris Evert was at the presentation along with wakeboarder Noah Flegle, who was named the 2011 SportsKid of the Year.

Other athletes in attendance were: Wayne Gretzky, David Ortiz, Sugar Ray Leonard, and David Robinson.

Photos: Charles Norfleet / PR Photos

College Basketball Coaches Named Sports Illustrated Sportsman And Sportswoman Of The Year

The winningest basketball coaches of all time in the NCAA, Pat Summitt and Mike Krzyzewski, were named the 2011 Sports Illustrated Sportsman and Sportswoman of the Year. Tennessee’s Summitt and Duke’s Krzyzewski are now a part of an elite group of people in sports, and two of only four college basketball coaches to receive the honor. UCLA’s John Wooden was given the honor in 1972 and North Carolina’s Dean Smith in 1997.

Sports Illustrated editor Terry McDonnell said, “The voices of those who have been inspired by Pat Summitt and Mike Krzyzewski echo from everywhere and will continue for decades. What they have achieved through their coaching and, more importantly, their teaching places them among history’s transcendent figures. It is an honor to now include them in the select group of Sportsmen and Sportswomen.”

Summitt and Krzyzewski will be honored tonight in New York City, and will be joined by fellow Sportswomen and Sportsman including Chris Evert, Sugar Ray Leonard, Wayne Gretzky, David Robinson, and David Ortiz.

Photo: PR Newswire

Jon Jones Wins Fighter Of The Year At World MMA Awards

The 2011 World MMA Awards were held last night at The Pearl at the Palms in Las Vegas. The awards, which honor achievements in the sport of MMA from September 2010 until August 2011, not only honor individuals but brands, gyms, media sources, and ring entrances among the titles.

The Charles “Mask” Lewis Fighter of the Year title was awarded to Jon Jones, not surprisingly. The title is named after one of the founders of the TapouT clothing brand that promotes many MMA fighters. Lewis was killed in a car crash in 2009.

UFC President Dana White won the Leading Man of the Year title, Arianny Celeste was named the Ring Girl of the Year, and Donald Cerrone was awarded the Breakthrough Fighter of the Year title.

Shawn Tompkins, who passed away earlier this year, was honored with a special lifetime achievement award.

Miesha Tate was named the Female Fighter of the Year. Congratulations to her, we love girls getting acknowledged for their part in the sport! We do not, however, love the green dress she chose to wear.

Some of the other awards included:

International Fighter of the Year: Alistair Overeem

Gym of the Year: Black House

Referee of the Year: Herb Dean

Comeback of the Year: Cheick Kongo

Test Technical Equipment: Everlast

MMA Journalist of the Year: Ariel Helwani

Coach of the Year: Greg Jackson

Media Source of the Year: MMAJunkie.com

Celebrities in attendance included Derek Hough, Mark Ballas, Cheryl Burke, Frankie Muniz, and Fox sportscaster Curt Menefee.

The awards ceremony will be televised on Dec. 11 on Fox Sports Net.

Photos: Judy Eddy/Wenn.com

Athlete Sightings At Footwear News Achievement Awards

NFL free agent Eric Johnson joined his very pregnant fiance, Jessica Simpson at the 25th Annual Footwear News Achievement Awards at the Museum of Modern Art in New York City last night. Simpson wore a red Donna Karan dress that showed off her baby bump.  Simpson’s footwear brand was honored at the event, along with other legends in the business including Manolo Blahnik who received the Lifetime Achievement Award.

Tennis star and designer Serena Williams sported a saucy red dress with some sky-high slingback gold heels with a bow at the peep-toe.

Other famous designers at the event included Betsey Johnson, Steve Madden, (wearing an Occupy Wall Street hat) Vince Camuto, Carolina Herrera, Rachel Zoe, Brian Atwood,  Nicholas Kirkwood, Patricia Field, and Kenneth Cole.

Photos: Janet Mayer / PR Photos

Cristiano Ronaldo Receives Golden Shoe Award

Soccer stud Cristiano Ronaldo was awarded the 2011 European Golden Shoe in Madrid on Nov. 4. The award goes to the top goal scorer in the European league. Ronaldo scored 40 goals in La Liga, a new record for goals scored in a season in the Spanish first division.

Ronaldo won the award back in the 2007-2008 season when he was in the Premier League.

Photo: Michael Murdock / Splash News

Athletes Attend Annual Salute To Women In Sports

The Womens Sports Foundation, founded by Billie Jean King (pictured above),  held their annual Salute to Women in Sports Awards Gala at Cipriani in New York City last night.

The Womens Sports Foundation “is dedicated to advancing the lives of girls and women through sports and physical activity.”

Among those in attendance: tennis star Venus Williams (above), and Olympic figure skater Michelle Kwan, (pictured in the last photo). Alex Morgan and Abby Wambach from the women’s U.S. soccer team, as well as WNBA player Maya Moore, boxer and WSF President Laila Ali, and golfer Annika Sorenstam were just some of the many faces on the red carpet.

The U.S. Women’s Ski Jumping team received the Wilma Rudolph Courage Award for their “perservance and courage in fighting to gain equality in, and acceptance into, the Olympic Games.”

U.S. Women’s soccer goalie Abby Wombach was named the team sport’s Sportswoman of the Year, and LPGA golfer Yani Tseng was named the individual sport’s Sportswoman of the Year.

Twelve-year-old triathlete Winter Vinecki was the winner of the 2011 ANNIKA Inspiration Award. Winter founded Team Winter, a non-profit to benefit prostate cancer research and awareness, in honor of her late father.

Photos: Ivan Nikolov/WENN.com and PR Newswire

Dirk Nowitzki Awarded Germany’s Highest Honor For Sport

In anticipation he will lead the German national team to the 2012 Olympics, Dirk Nowtizki was awarded the country’s highest honor for sport yesterday in Berlin. The Dallas Mavericks star was handed the “Silberne Lorbeerblatt,” German for silver laurel leaf, a German sports medal. German President Christian Wulff presented him with the award.

Photo: Away! / PR Photos

Dennis Rodman Delivers Emotional Hall Of Fame Speech

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Dennis Rodman is quite the character. He has done some pretty wacky things over the course of his career and after, that have put him in a bad light. But despite his bizarre and outrageous tendencies, he still was able to win five NBA championships over the course of his career. He earned his place in the basketball Hall of Fame and showed a different side of himself while delivering his acceptance speech. He showed behind all the crazy hats and feather boas he is still human, and got so choked up he couldn’t speak the first minute he was on stage.

Rodman thanked the many people who helped him get to where he is today and talked about the toll his lifestyle and persona took on his family and friends. You can watch all twelve minutes of the speech above, or just catch the emotional beginning.

Athlete Sighting: Tony Hawk At VH1′s Do Something Awards

Tony Hawk was spotted last night on the red carpet for the 2011 VH1 Do Something Awards. The awards are a joint effort of VH1 and DoSomething.Org to honor young people’s commitment to social change. Hawk was a presenter and was joined by the likes of Kim Kardashian, Kristen Bell, Amy Poehler, David Spade and other celebrity presenters. Demi Lovato, OneRepublic, and Foster the People performed for the crowd at the Hollywood Palladium. The show was hosted by “Glee” star Jane Lynch.

Athletes nominated for an award were Bethany Hamilton, Jeff Gordon, Ryan Sheckler, Rafael Nadal, and David Beckham. The show airs this Thursday at 6 pm PST on VH1.

Photo: David Gabber / PR Photos

Dennis Rodman Arriving To Hall Of Fame Enshrinement Ceremony On Helicopter With Acrobats

Dennis Rodman, along with nine other basketball players and coaches, will be inducted into the basketball hall of fame today in Springfield, Massachusetts. The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame Enshrinement Ceremony will honor the Class of 2011 by inducting them in as Hall of Fame presenters recognize their contribution to the sport.

Rodman, who has a penchant for wearing women’s clothing, told the Miami Herald ” a couple of my outfits will be ‘out there’.” He wanted to arrive to the ceremony on a float, but the idea was nixed by the city who wasn’t willing to block off streets for the event. Instead, he is paying $60,000 to fly in on a helicopter with some of his friends including Penny Marshall and Howard Stern. He said too, that he hired acrobats to perform.

We’re looking forward to seeing some video and photos of the event. Rodman’s former coach Phil Jackson is coming out of hiding to present Rodman.

Photo: PRN / PR Photos