On Thursday, ESPN announced that Prince Harry would receive the prestigious Pat Tillman Award for Service at this year’s ESPY Awards, but not everyone is happy about it.
The award was established in 2014 in memory of heroic former NFL player Pat Tillman, who turned down a contract worth upwards of $3 million to join the U.S. Army and fight in Afghanistan, where he was tragically killed in a friendly-fire incident.
Tillman’s mother, Mary “Dannie” Tillman, is not at all happy with the decision to give the award to Prince Harry.
“I am shocked as to why they would select such a controversial and divisive individual to receive the award,” she told The DailyMail. “There are recipients that are far more fitting. There are individuals working in the veteran community that are doing tremendous things to assist veterans.
“These individuals do not have the money, resources, connections, or privilege that Prince Harry has. I feel that those types of individuals should be recognized.”
Harry is a ten-year veteran of the British Army who served in Afghanistan. His connection to the sports world comes through the Invictus Games, a competition featuring men and women from armed services worldwide who have suffered war wounds and injuries. Harry launched the Invictus Games in 2014, the same year the Pat Tillman Service Award was established.
“He always wanted to try to do the right thing – not that he did the right thing all the time, but he tried – and he defended his friends whenever they were in some kind of trouble,” Mary Tillman told ESPN. “I just think it [the 9/11 attacks and their aftermath] trivialized football … and I think he felt like he should do more.”
In 2023, the Bills training staff received the award for the life-saving care they provided to Bills safety Damar Hamlin, who went into cardiac arrest on Monday Night Football.
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