The Best Female Action Sports Athlete ESPY Award is an annual award honoring the achievements of a female athlete from the world of
action sports. It was first awarded as part of the
ESPY Awards in 2004 after the non-gender-specific
Best Action Sports Athlete ESPY Award was presented the previous two years (with the American snowboarder
Kelly Clark receiving the 2002 award).[1] It is given to the female, irrespective of nationality or sport contested, adjudged to be the best action sports athlete in a given
calendar year.
Balloting for the award is undertaken by fans over the Internet from between three and five choices selected by the ESPN Select Nominating Committee, which is composed of a panel of experts.[2] It is conferred in July to reflect performance and achievement over the preceding twelve months.[3]
The inaugural winner of the award was the American
wakeboarderDallas Friday.[4] During 2003 and 2004, Friday won 12 of the available 14 professional women's titles, including national and world championships. She became the first wakeboarder to be nominated for, and hence to win, an ESPY Award.[5] Athletes from the United States have won more times than any other nationality with ten (three times to snowboarders
Jamie Anderson and
Chloe Kim), followed by Australians with three, two of which went to the surfer
Stephanie Gilmore. Snowboarders are most successful sportspeople, with eleven awards, followed by surfers with four. It was not awarded in
2020 due to the
COVID-19 pandemic.[6] The most recent winner of the award was Chinese freestyle skier
Eileen Gu in
2022.[7]
Winners
Best Female Action Sports Athlete ESPY Award winners and nominees
The Best Female Action Sports Athlete ESPY Award is an annual award honoring the achievements of a female athlete from the world of
action sports. It was first awarded as part of the
ESPY Awards in 2004 after the non-gender-specific
Best Action Sports Athlete ESPY Award was presented the previous two years (with the American snowboarder
Kelly Clark receiving the 2002 award).[1] It is given to the female, irrespective of nationality or sport contested, adjudged to be the best action sports athlete in a given
calendar year.
Balloting for the award is undertaken by fans over the Internet from between three and five choices selected by the ESPN Select Nominating Committee, which is composed of a panel of experts.[2] It is conferred in July to reflect performance and achievement over the preceding twelve months.[3]
The inaugural winner of the award was the American
wakeboarderDallas Friday.[4] During 2003 and 2004, Friday won 12 of the available 14 professional women's titles, including national and world championships. She became the first wakeboarder to be nominated for, and hence to win, an ESPY Award.[5] Athletes from the United States have won more times than any other nationality with ten (three times to snowboarders
Jamie Anderson and
Chloe Kim), followed by Australians with three, two of which went to the surfer
Stephanie Gilmore. Snowboarders are most successful sportspeople, with eleven awards, followed by surfers with four. It was not awarded in
2020 due to the
COVID-19 pandemic.[6] The most recent winner of the award was Chinese freestyle skier
Eileen Gu in
2022.[7]
Winners
Best Female Action Sports Athlete ESPY Award winners and nominees