LOS ANGELES (AP) — Skier Mikaela Shiffrin was honored as best women's sports athlete at The ESPYS on Wednesday night.
The 29-year-old won her 87th World Cup race in March, breaking the mark set by Ingemar Stenmark for the most such wins by any skier. She went on to win an 88th Cup race, as well as the overall season title.
“This season was absolutely incredible and there was a lot of talk about records and it got me thinking, why is a record actually important?” Shiffrin said at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood. “I just feel like it’s not important to break records or re-set records. It's important to set the tone for the next generation, to inspire them.”
Sports talk host Pat McAfee handled the opening monologue in his first major public appearance since joining ESPN in May.
The show honoring the past year's top sports moments and athletes didn't have a celebrity host as a result of the Hollywood writers strike. McAfee offered a series of hints that comedian Kevin Hart had been set for the gig but that Hart instead chose to support the Writers Guild of America.
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