Robin Roberts is well known for her bravery. After battling breast cancer in 2007 and just recently beating a rare blood disorder, ESPN has decided to give her the Arthur Ashe Courage Award at this year's ESPY's on July 17, according to the Los Angeles Times.
Roberts, who co-hosts ABC's "Good Morning America", recently returned to the show last month.
"Robin brings an amazing amount of energy, compassion and determination to everything she does," said ESPN President John Skipper in a statement. "Those qualities made her an incredible asset during her time here at ESPN, and they have served her well as she battled the terrible health challenges that she's had to face. Robin's accomplishments in so many areas, as an athlete, a broadcaster, a cancer survivor and more, demonstrate her ability to shine regardless of adversity and we could not be more proud to honor her as the recipient of this year's Arthur Ashe Courage Award."
Roberts was one of the first female anchors on ESPN.
The disease Roberts was battling is called myelodysplastic syndrome and occurs when bone marrow does not make enough healthy blood cells, according to Cancer.gov.
The cause of the disease is relatively unknown, although Cancer.gov points out that "past treatment with chemotherapy or radiation therapy for cancer", "being exposed to certain chemicals such as tobacco." or "being exposed to heavy metals such as mercury" can lead to this disease.
Roberts received a bone marrow transport in October and returned to the air in February.
Roberts also played for four seasons at Southeastern Louisiana. She still remains atop the leaders in points scored and rebounds, according to the LA Times. She began her tenure at ESPN in 1990 and eventually landed the lead anchor position on "Good Morning America" in 2005.
