At the 2025 ESPY Awards, Paige Bueckers delivered a surprising video message honoring Diana Taurasi, acknowledging Taurasi's influence on her own outs

UConn legend Diana Taurasi and Quinnipiac rugby star Ilona Maher represented Connecticut on a national stage Wednesday as ESPY Award winners.

Diana Taurasi was honored as one of the two recipients, alongside soccer legend Alex Morgan, for the ESPYs "Icon Award" on Wednesday night. Taurasi announced her retirement from the WNBA back in February after 20 seasons in the league.

This article originally appeared on Pride: 13 photos from the ESPYs that every lesbian and sapphic needs to see today

Host Shane Gillis brought his trademark brand of combative humor to the opening monologue of Wednesday night’s ESPY Awards in Hollywood, drawing a mixed response from the audience of professional athletes and Hollywood celebrities.

LOS ANGELES (AP) — The 2025 ESPY awards show airing live from the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles brings together top athletes and celebrities to celebrate the year’s most unforgettable sports moments. This is a photo gallery curated by AP photo editors.

San Diego’s Ilona Maher received the ESPY for best breakthrough athlete. The American women’s rugby star was one of the stars of last summer’s Olympics, helping lead the United States to a bronze medal in rugby sevens. The U.S. Olympic rugby team trains at the Chula Vista Elite Athlete Training Center.

Indeed, the 2025 ESPYS hosted by Shane Gillis in Los Angeles on July 16 saw the most famous names in the athletic world come together to celebrate the past year in sports. Leading the nominations was Philadelphia Eagles running back Saquon Barkley with three nods,