Comedian Rob Riggle to speak at next month’s KC sports awards banquet

Hollywood heavyweight Rob Riggle, a Kansas City native who wears his fandom of the area’s college and pro sports teams on his sleeve, will be the featured speaker at next month’s Kansas City Sports Commission Awards Banquet.

A comedian, writer, actor, producer and director, Riggle is currently starring in the motion picture “Dumb and Dumber To” with Jim Carrey and Jeff Daniels. He’s a regular at major sports events around KC and co-hosts an annual charity event here, the Big Slick Celebrity Weekend.

“We are thrilled to have Rob Riggle speak at the awards banquet this year,” said Sports Commission president and CEO Kathy Nelson. “As a native Kansas Citian and avid sports fan, Rob’s passion for athletics and loyalty to the local teams will shine during an event that honors sports and their impact in our community.”

The annual awards banquet takes place April 15 at the Marriott Muehlebach Tower.

Royals general manager Dayton Moore and Missouri Tigers defensive end Shane Ray headline the winners of this year’s six awards. Moore was chosen executive of the year and Ray is the sportsman of the year.

Moore oversaw the construction of a Royals team that won the American League for the first time in 29 years.

Ray led the Southeastern Conference in sacks and tackles for loss per game in helping lead the Tigers to their second straight SEC East title.

Other winners: Park University volleyball coach Mike Talamantes as coach of the year, powerlifting champion Bobbi Walden as sportswoman of the year, and Baker football coach Mike Grossner and soccer standout Nick Hibbeler as community champions.

Talamantes guided Park to national championships in women’s and men’s volleyball last year, and the program combined for a 70-4 record.

Walden, a Second Lieutenant in the Army, has been ranked in the top 30 nationally for the past two years and owns many Kansas records in her weight class.

Grossner coached Baker to an 8-3 season while battling a throat tumor and didn’t miss a game.

Two years ago, Hibbeler was diagnosed with testicular cancer and underwent six rounds of chemotherapy and five surgeries and still competed for Park Hill High and Olympic Development Training soccer teams.

For more information about the award winners and the banquet itself, go to sportkc.org.

This story was originally published March 23, 2015 at 2:23 PM.