Photo: Red Bull
The Maui surf community has been awarded ESPN’s prestigious Muhammad Ali Sports Humanitarian Award at the 2024 ESPYs, an honor that recognizes athletes and sports figures who use the power of sports to make a difference in communities across the globe.
The award is recognition of the efforts made within the tight-knit community after the 2023 wildfire that ravaged Lahaina and devastated the island. With many members of big wave safety crews, surfers, and water safety around the island spearheading recovery efforts after the August blaze, ESPN shined a light on the surfers of Maui. Nearly 3,000 homes were destroyed and an estimated $6 billion in damages were suffered, displacing an astonishing number of Maui residents.
“When you’re trying to help other people, you’re not thinking about yourself or the recognition you might get from it. I just did the best I could to help and so many people on Maui turned up,” Kai Lenny said. “The award is for the entire Maui community because everyone dropped what they were doing to support.”
This isn’t the first time the Maui community has been recognized through mainstream sports media. In February, the NFL named members and coaches of the Lahaina High School football team as honorary captains for the Super Bowl in Las Vegas.
“With the aloha spirit you’re not necessarily thinking of the future or the past, you’re just living in the moment. When you live that way It’s easy to do the right thing,” Lenny added on Wednesday. “The right thing in this situation was to turn up for your neighbors, turn up for your friends, family, and try to be there when it’s the most critical moments of people’s lives. At the end of the day, if you just let the Aloha spirit guide you, you’ll always be making the right decision.”
The award was announced on Wednesday at an event in Hollywood, California. It will be highlighted and acknowledged once again on Thursday during ESPN’s official ESPYs ceremony broadcast.