Caitlyn Jenner to receive Arthur Ashe Courage Award at ESPYs

Caitlyn Jenner is to be honored with the Arthur Ashe Courage Award at the 2015 ESPY Awards ceremony, according to multiple media sources.

In a Vanity Fair article introducing the former Bruce Jenner as a woman, Jenner mentions that she will make her first major public appearance as Caitlyn while accepting the award in person, with all of her children and grandchildren accompanying her onstage.

CNN and E! Online have confirmed that Jenner will receive the award at the ESPYs, which are scheduled to take place July 15 at Nokia Theatre.

In the Vanity Fair article, which appeared online Monday, Jenner appears in a photo spread by renowned photographer Annie Leibovitz and speaks for the first time publicly since completing gender transition.

Also on Monday, Jenner opened a Twitter account and already has more than 900,000 followers. “I’m so happy after such a long struggle to be living my true self. Welcome to the world Caitlyn. Can’t wait for you to get to know her/me,” she tweeted.

Bruce Jenner won a gold medal in the decathlon at the 1976 Montreal Olympics. He later appeared as the patriarch in the “Keeping Up With the Kardashians” reality TV series.

The Arthur Ashe Courage Award is presented to someone “possessing strength in the face of adversity, courage in the face of peril and the willingness to stand up for their beliefs no matter what the cost,” according to ESPN.com

Past winners include Michael Sam, Robin Roberts, Pat Summit, Nelson Mandela, Pat Tillman, Billie Jean King and Muhammad Ali.

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