Tennis icon Venus Williams to headline 2018 Des Moines Register Sports Awards
Zack CreglowIt's hard to equal the first two years of the Des Moines Register Sports Awards.
But we think we found a way.
The annual event, honoring more than 750 All-Iowa high school honorees, has brought sports legends Peyton Manning and Shaquille O'Neal to Des Moines as guest speaker at the first two events.
The guest speaker for this year's award show is just as impressive.
That person? Venus Williams.
“The last two years, we created memories of a lifetime for student athletes from across the state. Many parents and students told us that the events exceeded every expectation that they had," said David Chivers, the president of Register Media. "Shaquille O’Neal was a critical component to our event, and we’re thrilled to announce that Venus Williams will build on our past success, as will returning to Wells Fargo Arena.”
The Sports Awards event is June 23 at Wells Fargo Arena. And at the center of the event will be Williams, a tennis icon who has won seven Grand Slam singles titles and 14 Grand Slam doubles titles, playing with her sister Serena.
Venus, with nearly 800 singles wins in her career, is a former No. 1 player in the world who currently ranks No. 8 in women's tennis. TENNIS magazine in its most recent edition ranked her as the eighth-greatest women's tennis player of the Open era.
Like her sister, Venus is a global superstar who transcends her sport.
“Venus is a phenomenal athlete and has a great story to share,” Chivers said. “Venus also speaks up for equal rights and social injustices, and she has been honored by the Anti-Defamation League as well as being the first to be named ‘UNESCO Promotor of Gender Equality.’ We’re excited for her to talk with our nominees and winners. She’ll inspire every athlete in the program.”
TICKETS: Purchase tickets now, including family-friendly four packs
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Venus Williams is also a minority stake owner in the Miami Dolphins, operates the interior design company V Starr Interiors and author of a book that placed among the New York Times' best-sellers in 2010.
The Sports Awards are sponsored by Hy-Vee, Mediacom and Wells Fargo.
Athletes and coach of the year honorees have been announced for the following sports: baseball, softball, girls' swimming, boys' and girls' cross country, volleyball and football. The boys' swimming All-Iowa team will appear in Sunday's Register. The remaining All-Iowa teams will be announced after each sport's season ends.
Most All-Iowa teams feature an all-class Elite team, a first team for each classification, an honorable mention group, athlete of the year finalists and a coach of the year. All of these honorees are invited to the ceremony free of charge. The athlete of the year in each of the 21 All-Iowa sports will be announced and honored at the Sports Awards in June, along with an overall boy and girl athlete of the year, overall coach of the year, team of the year and several other premiere awards.
A group of athletes from Special Olympics Iowa also will be honored.
Des Moines Register Sports Awards
The Des Moines Register Sports Awards recognizes and honors top athletes from across the state of Iowa in 21 sports. This event is hosted by the Des Moines Register and will take place June 23, 2018 at Wells Fargo Arena. The show features various awards, contests and a special appearance from Venus Williams.
- Ticket info: General admission tickets are now on sale for the Des Moines Register Sports Awards. Purchase your tickets at SportsAwards.DesMoinesRegister.com.
- Athletes: Each honored athlete will receive one complementary ticket. Athletes will be contacted by their athletic director or coach with details on how to RSVP for the event.
- General admission: Public tickets are now on sale for the event.
- Individual ticket price: $35 plus service fees.
- Family four-pack ticket price: $112 plus service fees.
- Student ticket price: $25 plus service fees. Limited two per order. Use promo code STUDENT at checkout.
- Merchandise: Sports Awards T-shirts, tank tops and more are on sale now at ShopDMRegister.com/SportsAwards.
- Hotel: Discounted hotel rooms are available at the Renaissance Des Moines Savery Hotel. Book at http://dmreg.co/SAHotel or call 1-800-514-4706 and ask for the “Des Moines Register All Iowa Sports Awards group block.”