Special Olympics founder Eunice Kennedy Shriver is the recipient of this year's Arthur Ashe Courage Award.
Her son Timothy Shriver will accept the award on her behalf at this year's ESPYS. Eunice Kennedy Shriver died in 2009.
"My mother, Eunice Kennedy Shriver, was a visionary, but, more importantly, a revolutionary," said Timothy Shriver, current chairman of the Special Olympics. "Fueled by love and anger, she used sport to break down the barriers, she used fields of play to bring people together and she opened the doors of inclusion and equality to the most marginalized on Earth. It is now up to all of us to follow the athletes of Special Olympics who can teach us all to accept and include each other."
Inspired by her sister Rosemary Kennedy, who had intellectual disabilities, and the bond they formed through sports, Eunice Kennedy Shriver established Camp Shriver in 1962 as a summer day camp at her Maryland farm. The camp grew into the Special Olympics, with the first International Special Olympics Games being held in 1968.
Shriver, the sister of President John F. Kennedy and senators Robert F. Kennedy and Ted Kennedy, continued to advocate for disability issues and children's health until her death.
The Arthur Ashe Courage Award honors individuals whose contributions transcend sports. The 25th ESPYS will air live at 8 p.m. ET July 12 on ABC.
