The USOPC Athlete of the Year (historically USOC Athlete of the Year) awards are part of a series of awards presented by the

United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee The United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee (USOPC) is the National Olympic Committee and the National Paralympic Committee for the United States. It was founded in 1895 as the United States Olympic Committee, and is headquartered in C ...

to athletes who have distinguished themselves in one of the Olympic or

Paralympic The Paralympic Games or Paralympics, also known as the ''Games of the Paralympiad'', is a periodic series of international multisport events involving athletes with a range of physical disabilities, including impaired muscle power and impaire ...

sport Sport pertains to any form of competitive physical activity or game that aims to use, maintain, or improve physical ability and skills while providing enjoyment to participants and, in some cases, entertainment to spectators. Sports can, ...

s. Awards are presented to the Olympic or Paralympic SportsMan of the Year, SportsWoman of the Year, and Team of the Year. Historically, all awards were presented annually. Starting in 2014, the award structure was changed as follows: * Performances by the best athletes and teams in the Olympics and Paralympics are honored with the Team USA Awards—Athlete of the Olympic Games (both male and female), Team of the Olympic Games, Athlete of the Paralympic Games (both male and female), and Team of the Paralympic Games. These are presented in Olympic and Paralympic years (normally even-numbered, though the 2020 Summer Olympics have been delayed to 2021). * The Athlete of the Year, Paralympian of the Year, and Team of the Year awards are presented in other years. Nominees for each award are submitted by the national governing bodies of Olympic, Paralympic, and Pan American Games sports, and by their affiliated able-bodied and disabled sports organizations. Winners are selected by a vote of the USOPC awards committee, consisting of USOPC representatives, media representatives, and Olympic athletes. The SportsMan and SportsWoman of the Year awards were first presented in 1974; the Team of the Year award was added in 1996 and the Paralympian of the Year award was added in 2004. The Paralympian award was subdivided into men's and women's awards in 2009, with the Paralympic Team of the Year award added at that time.

SportsMan of the Year

*1974 — Jim Bolding,

athletics Athletics may refer to: Sports * Sport of athletics, a collection of sporting events that involve competitive running, jumping, throwing, and walking ** Track and field, a sub-category of the above sport * Athletics (physical culture), competi ...

*1975 —

Clinton Jackson Clinton Jackson (born May 20, 1954) is an American former professional boxer. As an amateur, he competed in the 1976 Summer Olympics. He also won a silver medal at the 1974 World Championships and a gold at the 1975 Pan American Games. Biograph ...

boxing Boxing (also known as "Western boxing" or "pugilism") is a combat sport in which two people, usually wearing protective gloves and other protective equipment such as hand wraps and mouthguards, throw punches at each other for a predetermine ...

*1976 —

John Naber John Phillips Naber (born January 20, 1956) is an American former competitive swimmer, five-time Olympic medalist and former world record-holder in multiple events. Born in Evanston, Illinois, Naber studied in England and Italy where his father ...

swimming Swimming is the self-propulsion of a person through water, or other liquid, usually for recreation, sport, exercise, or survival. Locomotion is achieved through coordinated movement of the limbs and the body to achieve hydrodynamic thrust that r ...

*1977 —

Eric Heiden Eric Arthur Heiden (born June 14, 1958) is an American physician and a former long track speed skater, road cyclist and track cyclist. He won an unprecedented five individual gold medals, and set four Olympic records and one world record at th ...

speed skating Speed skating is a competitive form of ice skating in which the competitors race each other in travelling a certain distance on skates. Types of speed skating are long track speed skating, short track speed skating, and marathon speed skatin ...

*1978 — Bruce Davidson, equestrianism *1979 — Eric Heiden, speed skating *1980 — Eric Heiden, speed skating *1981 — Scott Hamilton,

figure skating Figure skating is a sport in which individuals, pairs, or groups perform on figure skates on ice. It was the first winter sport to be included in the Olympic Games, when contested at the 1908 Olympics in London. The Olympic disciplines are m ...

*1982 —

Greg Louganis Gregory Efthimios Louganis (; born January 29, 1960) is an American Olympic diver, LGBT activist, and author who won gold medals at the 1984 and 1988 Summer Olympics on the springboard and platform. He is the only man and the second diver in Ol ...

diving Diving most often refers to: * Diving (sport), the sport of jumping into deep water * Underwater diving, human activity underwater for recreational or occupational purposes Diving or Dive may also refer to: Sports * Dive (American football), a ...

*1983 — Rick McKinney, archery *1984 —

Edwin Moses Edwin Corley Moses (born August 31, 1955) is an American former track and field athlete who won gold medals in the 400 m hurdles at the 1976 and 1984 Olympics. Between 1977 and 1987, Moses won 107 consecutive finals (122 consecutive races) and ...

, athletics *1985 — Willie Banks, athletics *1986 —

Matt Biondi Matt may refer to: *Matt (name), people with the given name ''Matt'' or Matthew, meaning "gift from God", or the surname Matt *In British English, of a surface: having a non-glossy finish, see gloss (material appearance) *Matt, Switzerland, a mu ...

, swimming *1987 — Greg Louganis, diving *1988 — Matt Biondi, swimming *1989 — Roger Kingdom, athletics *1990 — John T. Smith,

wrestling Wrestling is a series of combat sports involving grappling-type techniques such as clinch fighting, throws and takedowns, joint locks, pins and other grappling holds. Wrestling techniques have been incorporated into martial arts, combat ...

( freestyle) *1991 —

Carl Lewis Frederick Carlton Lewis (born July 1, 1961) is an American former track and field athlete who won nine Olympic gold medals, one Olympic silver medal, and 10 World Championships medals, including eight gold. His career spanned from 1979 to 1996 ...

, athletics *1992 —

Pablo Morales Pedro Pablo Morales Jr. (born December 5, 1964) is an American former competitive swimmer. He set world records in the 100-meter butterfly in 1984 and 1986. He was the 100-meter butterfly gold medalist at the 1992 Olympic Games, as well as win ...

, swimming *1993 — Michael Johnson, athletics *1994 —

Dan Jansen Daniel Erwin Jansen (born June 17, 1965) is a retired American speed skater. A multiple world champion in sprint and perennial favorite at the Winter Olympics, he broke a ten-year Olympic jinx when he won a gold medal in his final race, which ...

, speed skating *1995 — Michael Johnson, athletics *1996 — Michael Johnson, athletics *1997 — Pete Sampras,

tennis Tennis is a racket sport that is played either individually against a single opponent ( singles) or between two teams of two players each ( doubles). Each player uses a tennis racket that is strung with cord to strike a hollow rubber ball ...

*1998 — Jonny Moseley,

skiing Skiing is the use of skis to glide on snow. Variations of purpose include basic transport, a recreational activity, or a competitive winter sport. Many types of competitive skiing events are recognized by the International Olympic Committee ( ...

( freestyle) *1999 —

Lance Armstrong Lance Edward Armstrong ('' né'' Gunderson; born September 18, 1971) is an American former professional road racing cyclist. Regarded as a sports icon for winning the Tour de France seven consecutive times from 1999 to 2005 after recovering fr ...

cycling Cycling, also, when on a two-wheeled bicycle, called bicycling or biking, is the use of cycles for transport, recreation, exercise or sport. People engaged in cycling are referred to as "cyclists", "bicyclists", or "bikers". Apart from t ...

(

road A road is a linear way for the conveyance of traffic that mostly has an improved surface for use by vehicles (motorized and non-motorized) and pedestrians. Unlike streets, the main function of roads is transportation. There are many types of ...

) *2000 —

Rulon Gardner Rulon Ellis Gardner (born August 16, 1971) is an American retired Greco-Roman Olympic Gold Medalist wrestler. He competed at the 2000 and 2004 Olympics and won the gold medal in 2000, defeating Russia's three-time reigning gold medalist Aleksan ...

, wrestling ( Greco-Roman) *2001 — Lance Armstrong, cycling (road) *2002 — Lance Armstrong, cycling (road) *2003 — Lance Armstrong, cycling (road) *2004 —

Michael Phelps Michael Fred Phelps II (born June 30, 1985) is an American former competitive swimmer. He is the most successful and most decorated Olympian of all time with a total of 28 medals. Phelps also holds the all-time records for Olympic gold med ...

, swimming *2005 —

Hunter Kemper Hunter Craig Kemper (born May 4, 1976) is a triathlete from the United States. He won the silver medal at the 1999 Pan American Games, behind Venezuela's Gilberto González, followed by winning gold four years later at the 2003 Pan American Ga ...

triathlon A triathlon is an endurance multisport race consisting of swimming, cycling, and running over various distances. Triathletes compete for fastest overall completion time, racing each segment sequentially with the time transitioning between the ...

*2006 —

Joey Cheek William Joseph Cheek (born June 22, 1979) is an American former speed skater and inline speed skater. He specialized in the short and middle distances and won Olympic gold in 2006. Currently Cheek is a media entrepreneur. Accomplishments Cheek' ...

, speed skating *2007 —

Tyson Gay Tyson Gay (born August 9, 1982) is an American track and field sprinter who competes in the 100 and 200 meters. His 100 m personal best of 9.69 seconds is the American record and makes him tied for the second fastest athlete over 100 m ...

, athletics *2008 — Michael Phelps, swimming *2009 — Todd Lodwick, skiing (

Nordic combined Nordic combined is a winter sport in which athletes compete in cross-country skiing and ski jumping. The Nordic combined at the Winter Olympics has been held since the first ever Winter Olympics in 1924, while the FIS Nordic Combined World Cup ...

) *2010 —

Evan Lysacek Evan Frank Lysacek (; born June 4, 1985) is an American retired figure skater. He is the 2010 Olympic champion, the 2009 World champion, a two-time (2005, 2007) Four Continents champion, the 2009 Grand Prix Final champion, and a two-time (2007, ...

, figure skating *2011-12 — Michael Phelps, swimming *2012-13 —

Ted Ligety Theodore Sharp Ligety (born August 31, 1984) is a retired American alpine ski racer, a two-time Olympic gold medalist, and an entrepreneur, having cofounded Shred Optics. Ligety won the combined event at the 2006 Olympics in Turin and the gi ...

, skiing (

alpine Alpine may refer to any mountainous region. It may also refer to: Places Europe * Alps, a European mountain range ** Alpine states, which overlap with the European range Australia * Alpine, New South Wales, a Northern Village * Alpine National Pa ...

) *2014-15 —

Jordan Burroughs Jordan Ernest Burroughs (born July 8, 1988) is an American freestyle wrestler and former folkstyle wrestler who currently competes at 79 kilograms, and previously competed at 74 kilos. In freestyle, he was the 2012 Olympic gold medalist, is ...

, wrestling (freestyle) *2016 — Michael Phelps, swimming *2017 — Kyle Snyder, wrestling (freestyle) * 2018 —

Shaun White Shaun Roger White (born September 3, 1986) is an American former professional snowboarder and skateboarder. He is a five-time Olympian and a three-time Olympic gold medalist in half-pipe snowboarding. He holds the world record for the most X G ...

, snowboarding * 2019 —

Nathan Chen Nathan Chen (born May 5, 1999) is an American figure skater. He is the 2022 Olympic champion, a three-time World champion (2018, 2019, 2021), the 2017 Four Continents champion, a three-time Grand Prix Final champion (2017, 2018, 2019), a ten ...

, figure skating

SportsWoman of the Year

*1974 — Shirley Babashoff, swimming *1975 — Kathy Heddy, swimming *1976 —

Sheila Young Sheila Grace Young-Ochowicz (born October 14, 1950) is a retired American speed skater and track cyclist. She won three world titles in each of these sports, twice in the same year (in 1973 and 1976). In 1976, she also became the first American ...

, speed skating *1977 —

Linda Fratianne Linda Sue Fratianne (born August 2, 1960) is an American former figure skating, figure skater known for winning two World Championship titles (1977, 1979), four consecutive U.S. Championships (1977–1980), and a silver medal in the 1980 Winter ...

, figure skating *1978 —

Tracy Caulkins Tracy Anne Stockwell, OAM, (born January 11, 1963), née Tracy Anne Caulkins, is an American former competition swimmer, three-time Olympic gold medalist, five-time world champion, and former world record-holder in three events. Caulkins was ...

, swimming *1979 — Cynthia Woodhead, swimming *1980 —

Beth Heiden Beth may refer to: Letter and number *Bet (letter), or beth, the second letter of the Semitic abjads (writing systems) *Hebrew word for "house", often used in the name of synagogues and schools (e.g. Beth Israel) Name *Beth (given name) lists p ...

, speedskating *1981 — Sheila Young Ochowicz, cycling/speed skating *1982 — Melanie Smith, equestrian *1983 — Tamara McKinney, skiing (alpine) *1984 — Tracy Caulkins, swimming *1985 — Mary Decker Slaney, athletics *1986 —

Jackie Joyner-Kersee Jacqueline Joyner-Kersee (born March 3, 1962) is a retired American track and field athlete, ranked among the all-time greatest athletes in the heptathlon as well as long jump. She won three gold, one silver, and two bronze Olympic medals in tho ...

, athletics *1987 — Jackie Joyner-Kersee, athletics *1988 —

Florence Griffith Joyner Florence Delorez Griffith Joyner (born Florence Delorez Griffith; December 21, 1959 – September 21, 1998), also known as Flo-Jo, was an American track and field athlete. She set world records in 1988 for the 100 m and 200 m. During the late ...

, athletics *1989 —

Janet Evans Janet Beth Evans (born August 28, 1971) is an American former competition swimmer who specialized in distance freestyle events. Evans was a world champion and world record-holder, and won a total of four gold medals at the 1988 and the 1992 Ol ...

, swimming *1990 — Lynn Jennings, athletics *1991 —

Kim Zmeskal Kimberly Lynn Zmeskal Burdette (née ''Zmeskal'' on February 6, 1976) is an American retired artistic gymnast turned gymnastics coach and the 1991 World All-Around champion. A member of the silver medal-winning U.S. team from the 1991 World Cha ...

gymnastics Gymnastics is a type of sport that includes physical exercises requiring balance, strength, flexibility, agility, coordination, dedication and endurance. The movements involved in gymnastics contribute to the development of the arms, legs, s ...

(

artistic Art is a diverse range of human activity, and resulting product, that involves creative or imaginative talent expressive of technical proficiency, beauty, emotional power, or conceptual ideas. There is no generally agreed definition of wh ...

) *1992 —

Bonnie Blair Bonnie Kathleen Blair (born March 18, 1964) is a retired American speed skater. She is one of the top skaters of her era, and one of the most decorated athletes in Olympic history. Blair competed for the United States in four Olympics, winnin ...

, speed skating *1993 —

Gail Devers Yolanda Gail Devers ( ; born November 19, 1966) is an American retired track and field sprinter who competed in the 60 metres, 60 m hurdles, 100 m and 100 m hurdles. One of the greatest and most decorated female sprinters of all time, she was t ...

, athletics *1994 — Bonnie Blair, speed skating *1995 —

Picabo Street Picabo Street (; born 3 April 1971) is an American former FIS Alpine Ski World Cup, World Cup Alpine skiing, alpine ski racer and Olympic gold medalist. She won the Super-G, super G at the Alpine skiing at the 1998 Winter Olympics, 1998 Winter O ...

, skiing (alpine) *1996 —

Amy Van Dyken Amy Deloris Van Dyken-Rouen (born February 15, 1973) is an American former competitive swimmer, Olympic champion, former world record-holder, and national radio sports talk show co-host. She won six Olympic gold medals in her career, four of wh ...

, swimming *1997 — Tara Lipinski, figure skating *1998 — Picabo Street, skiing (alpine) *1999 —

Jenny Thompson Jennifer Beth Thompson (born February 26, 1973) is an American former competition swimmer and anesthesiologist. She is one of the most decorated Olympians in history: twelve medals, including eight gold medals, in the 1992, 1996, 2000, and 200 ...

, swimming *2000 —

Marion Jones Marion Lois Jones (born October 12, 1975), also known as Marion Jones-Thompson, is an American former world champion track and field athlete and former professional basketball player. She won three gold medals and two bronze medals at the 2000 ...

, athletics *2001 —

Jennifer Capriati Jennifer Maria Capriati (born March 29, 1976) is an American former world No. 1 tennis player. A member of the International Tennis Hall of Fame, she won three singles Grand Slam titles and was the gold medalist at the 1992 Summer Olympics ...

, tennis *2002 —

Sarah Hughes Sarah Elizabeth Hughes (born May 2, 1985) is a former American competitive figure skater. She is the 2002 Olympic Champion and the 2001 World bronze medalist in ladies' singles. Personal life Hughes was born in Great Neck, New York, a subur ...

, figure skating *2003 —

Michelle Kwan Michelle Wingshan Kwan (born July 7, 1980) is a retired competitive figure skater and diplomat serving as United States Ambassador to Belize. In figure skating Kwan is a two-time Olympic medalist (silver in 1998, bronze in 2002), a five-time ...

, figure skating *2004 —

Carly Patterson Carly Rae Patterson (born February 4, 1988) is an American singer, songwriter and former artistic gymnast. She was the all-around champion at the 2004 Olympics, the first all-around champion for the United States at a non-boycotted Olympics, and ...

, gymnastics (artistic) *2005 —

Katie Hoff Kathryn Elise Hoff (born June 3, 1989) is a former American competitive swimmer, she is an Olympic medalist, and former world record-holder. Hoff was known for her success in the 200-meter and 400-meter individual medley. She represented the Un ...

, swimming *2006 —

Hannah Teter Hannah Teter (born January 27, 1987) is an American snowboarder. She is an Olympic champion, having won the gold medal in the halfpipe at the 2006 Winter Olympic Games in Torino, Italy and silver at the 2010 Winter Olympic Games in Vancouver.

, snowboarding *2007 — Katie Hoff, swimming *2008 —

Natalie Coughlin Natalie Anne Coughlin Hall (born August 23, 1982) is an American former competition swimmer and twelve-time Olympic medalist. While attending the University of California, Berkeley, she became the first woman ever to swim the 100-meter backstro ...

, swimming and

Nastia Liukin Anastasia "Nastia" Liukin (; russian: Анастасия Валерьевна Люкина ; born October 30, 1989) is a Russian-born American former artistic gymnast. She is the 2008 Olympic All-Around champion, a five-time Olympic medalist, ...

, gymnastics (artistic) *2009 —

Lindsey Vonn Lindsey Caroline Vonn ( ; born October 18, 1984) is an American former World Cup alpine ski racer on the US Ski Team. She won four World Cup overall championships — second only amongst female skiers to Annemarie Moser-Pröll — with three ...

, skiing (alpine) *2010 — Lindsey Vonn, skiing (alpine) *2011-12 — Allyson Felix, track & field *2012-13 — Katie Ledecky, swimming *2014-15 —

Simone Biles Simone Arianne Biles (; born March 14, 1997) is an American artistic gymnast. Her seven Olympic medals tied with Shannon Miller for the most Olympic medals won by an American gymnast. Having won 25 World Championship medals, she is the most de ...

, gymnastics (artistic) *2016 — Katie Ledecky, swimming *2017 — Katie Ledecky, swimming * 2018 – Chloe Kim, snowboarding * 2019 — Simone Biles, gymnastics (artistic)

Team of the Year

* 1996 — Women's National/Olympic Basketball Team * 1997 — Women's National Soccer Team * 1998 — Women's Olympic Ice Hockey Team * 1999 — U.S. Women's World Cup Team * 2000 —

USA Baseball USA Baseball is the national governing body for organized baseball in the United States, and is a member of the United States Olympic Committee and the World Baseball Softball Confederation. The organization selects and trains the World Baseba ...

Olympic Team * 2001 —

US Postal Service Cycling Team U.S. Postal Service Pro Cycling Team was a United States-based professional road bicycle racing team. On June 15, 2004, the Discovery Channel signed a deal to become sponsor of the team for the 2004–2007 seasons and its name changed to Di ...

* 2002 — Women's Bobsled Team (Jill Bakken and Vonetta Flowers) * 2003 — Women's Gymnastics Team * 2004 — U.S. Olympic Softball Team * 2005 — Men's Badminton Doubles Team (T. Gunawan, H. Bach) * 2006 — U.S. Olympic Men's Curling Team *2007 — U.S. Women's World Championships Gymnastics *2008 — U.S. Olympic Men's Indoor Volleyball Team *2009 — U.S. Four-Man Bobsled Team (Steven Holcomb, Steve Mesler, Justin Olsen, Curt Tomasevicz) *2010 — U.S. Four-Man Bobsled Team (Steven Holcomb, Justin Olsen, Steve Mesler, Curt Tomasevicz) *2011-12 — Women's Eight Rowing Team *2012-13 — Men's Tennis Doubles Team (Bob and Mike Bryan) *2014-15 — U.S. Women's World Cup Team *2016 — U.S. Women's Gymnastics Team *2017 — Women's National Ice Hockey Team *2018 — Women's National Ice Hockey Team * 2019 — U.S. Women's World Cup Team

Paralympian of the Year

"These prestigious awards recognize the outstanding contributions these athletes have made to Olympic and Paralympic sport as well as the positive example they have set for all Americans,” said USOC Chief Executive Officer

Jim Scherr James Edwin Scherr (born July 27, 1961) is a former American wrestler Wrestling is a series of combat sports involving grappling-type techniques such as clinch fighting, throws and takedowns, joint locks, pins and other grappling holds. ...

. “Each of our winners exemplifies great sportsmanship and strength of character both on and off the field, and all are worthy additions to the distinguished list of past recipients." *2004 — Erin Popovich,

*2005 —

Laurie Stephens Laurie Stephens (born March 5, 1984) is an alpine monoskier who has spina bifida. She has won multiple medals for the United States at the Paralympics. She has also had success at the IPC Alpine Skiing World Cup. Career Laurie Stephens started ...

, alpine skiing *2006 — Jessica Long, swimming *2007 — Jessica Galli, athletics *2008 — Erin Popovich, swimming

Paralympic SportsMan of the Year

*2009 —

Steve Cash Stephen Douglas Cash (May 5, 1946 – October 13, 2019) was an American musician, most notable as a founding and continual member of the rock band The Ozark Mountain Daredevils. Biography Born in Springfield, Missouri, Cash received his unde ...

, sled hockey *2010 — Taylor Chace, sled hockey *2011-12 — Raymond Martin, track & field *2012-13 — Raymond Martin, track & field

Male Paralympic Athlete of the Year

*2014-15 — Joe Berenyi, cycling *2016 — Brad Snyder, swimming *2017 —

Mikey Brannigan Michael Brannigan (born November 12, 1996), commonly known as Mikey Brannigan, is an American track and field athlete. Career He was not allowed to compete at the collegiate level because he could not meet National Collegiate Athletic Associatio ...

, track and field * 2018 — Dan Cnossen, Nordic skiing * 2019 — Ben Thompson, archery

Paralympic SportsWoman of the Year

*2009 —

Stephani Victor Stephani Victor (born August 29, 1969) is an LW12, LW 12–2 alpine skiing, alpine skier Paralympic multi medalist. Early life and education Stephani Victor was born on August 29, 1969, in Ames, Iowa. She finished high school in Sewickley, Penns ...

, alpine skiing *2010 — Alana Nichols, alpine skiing *2011-12 — Jessica Long, swimming *2012-13 — Monica Bascio, cycling

Female Paralympic Athlete of the Year

*2014-15 — Tatyana McFadden, track and field *2016 — Tatyana McFadden, track and field *2017 — Tatyana McFadden, track and field * 2018 —

Oksana Masters Oksana Masters (born June 19, 1989) is an American multi-sport Paralympic athlete of Ukrainian descent from Louisville, Kentucky. Having primarily specialized in rowing and cross-country skiing, she won the first ever United States medal in tr ...

, Nordic skiing * 2019 —Oksana Masters, Nordic skiing

Paralympic Team of the Year

*2009 — U.S. National Sled Hockey Team *2010 — U.S. Paralympic Sled Hockey Team *2011-12 — Men's Quad Doubles Tennis Team *2012-13 — U.S. Men's 4x100-Meter Relay Team *2014-15 — U.S. National Sled Hockey Team *2016 — U.S. Women's Sitting Volleyball Team *2017 — U.S. National Sled Hockey Team * 2018 — U.S. National Sled Hockey Team * 2019 — U.S. National Sled Hockey Team

References

External links

USOC OLYMPIAN ATHLETES OF THE YEAR
{{National Sportsperson of the Year United States at the Olympics United States at the Paralympics American sports trophies and awards Lists of award winners