Meghan Markle beamed with pride as Prince Harry prepared to win a prestigious military award at the ESPY Awards.
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex joined other award nominees including Patrick Mahomes and Caitlin Clark at the glitzy ESPN event on Thursday night, which will be hosted by tennis legend Serena Williams.
Harry will receive the Pat Tillman Award, named after the iconic NFL player who gave up his lucrative career to join the military after the 9/11 attacks before dying in Afghanistan in 2004, at a controversial event.
Tillman’s win sparked backlash from some, as the award usually goes to unsung veterans. Tillman’s mother, Mary, told DailyMail.com last month that she was “shocked” that her son’s award went to “such a controversial and divisive figure.”
Meghan Markle beamed with pride as Prince Harry prepared to win a prestigious military award at the ESPY Awards
Prince Harry raised eyebrows last month when he was announced as the 2024 winner of the Pat Tillman Award, a prestigious military and sporting honour.
The award is named for Pat Tillman, the iconic NFL player who left his lucrative career to join the military after the 9/11 attacks before dying in Afghanistan in 2004.
Hours before the event was set to begin, a small aircraft sent a mysterious message addressed to Prince Harry, cryptically urging him to “investigate Mumi’s death.”
Tennis legend Serena Williams led the stars on the red carpet early Thursday night ahead of her hosting duties at the event.
Williams, 42, has grown noticeably close to the royals in recent years and is often seen enjoying time with the couple at events.
Harry’s announcement as the winner last month drew scrutiny from event organizers, with ESPN personality Pat McAfee suggesting that Harry was chosen as a divisive winner on purpose to boost television ratings.
Mary Tillman also claimed she was not even consulted about the winner, telling the Mail there are other “recipients who are far more suitable”.
“These people don’t have the money, the resources, the connections or the privileges that Prince Harry has. I think these kinds of people should be recognised,” she said.
ESPN quickly defended its decision to give the award to Harry following Mary’s comments, saying it chose the Duke of Sussex “specifically because of the work of the Invictus Games Foundation.”
“While we understand that not everyone will agree with every honoree selected for any award, the Invictus Games Foundation does incredible work and ESPN believes this is a cause worth celebrating,” the network said in a statement to the New York Post.
The award notably bridges the worlds of sport and the military, and aims to recognize those who have made “outstanding civic contributions, extraordinary fortitude and spirit of service” in both fields.
Mary Tillman, the mother of the NFL star turned veteran, said she was “shocked” that her son’s award was given to “such a controversial and divisive figure.”
The Duke of Sussex completed two tours of Afghanistan as an Apache helicopter pilot
Previous winners Jake Wood (left, 2018) and Sgt. Israel Del Toro Jr. (right, 2017) defended Prince Harry’s win this year and paid tribute to his military service amid the backlash.
Hours before the event was set to begin, a small aircraft sent a mysterious message addressed to Prince Harry, cryptically urging him to “investigate Mumi’s death.”
Past winners of the award came out in support of Harry after critics slammed his win, with the 2017 and 2018 winners, US Marine Jake Wood and USAF Sergeant Major Israel Del Toro Jr. respectively, defending the duke.
Wood said TMZ who considered Harry’s military record to be commendable, as the royal had served two tours in Afghanistan, the same number of tours he himself had undertaken.
Del Toro Jr. also cited Harry’s work with the Invictus Games and said he looked forward to seeing the royal win this year’s award.
Veterans will be treated to a dazzling night in Los Angeles as a fleet of big names gather for the sports awards ceremony.
Other nominees include Patrick Mahomes and golf star Scottie Scheffler, who will compete for the Best Male Athlete award.
Caitlin Clark’s successful start to her WNBA career will see her become the favourite to win the Best Female Athlete award, alongside other nominees including tennis star Coco Guaff.
Tillman gained legions of fans during his three years in the NFL playing for the Arizona Cardinals.
The NFL star’s death in 2004 sparked a media frenzy as it was later revealed he was killed by friendly fire, but the military covered it up until a month after his funeral.
Tillman was already a household name in the NFL before he left to enlist, spending three successful years playing for the Arizona Cardinals.
In 2002, he opted out of a three-year, $3.6 million contract extension in favor of the Army, and while his time in the Army drew headlines just like his NFL career, he was making just $1,600 a month before taxes, according to Bleacher Report.
He was first deployed to Iraq in March 2003 and returned to the US to complete Ranger school (a grueling 62-day course) before being deployed again to Afghanistan in April 2004.
Tillman’s death just weeks into his tour in Afghanistan sparked a media frenzy, as it was initially reported that Tillman was killed by “enemy combatants” after his squad was ambushed.
However, it was later learned that Tillman had run up a hill during a firefight to protect his fellow soldiers, but was actually shot three times in the head by his own men in a tragic case of friendly fire.
The military only admitted the truth a month after Tillman’s very public funeral, and many speculated that it did so to avoid further bad press since his death occurred the same week that torture at Abu Ghraib prison was exposed.