KC Sports Awards will honor Kansas City Royals, Temwa Chawinga & more this August
A 30-game improvement and first playoff appearance in a decade for the Royals in 2024 will be honored at the Kansas City Sports Awards presented by Populous.
General manager J.J. Picollo, manager Matt Quatraro and catcher Salvador Perez are among those who will be honored at the event on Aug. 14 at the downtown Marriott.
Picollo, in his third season as Royals general manager, was named executive of the year. Quatraro, also in his third year, was named coach of the year.
Perez was named community champion along with Sarah Nauser, a former Kansas City police officer who lives with Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS).
Diagnosed in 2018, Nauser spent her final shift in uniform working security in the Royals dugout, where she met Perez and Royals legend George Brett.
Athlete of the year will be presented to Temwa Chawinga of the Kansas City Current. Last season, Chawinga, a native of Malawi was named MVP of the National Women’s Soccer League and won the NWSL Golden Boot as the league’s top scorer.
The Pittsburg State men’s and women’s track and field program was named team of the year. The Gorillas have won four straight NCAA Division II men’s outdoor track championships, and four indoor titles since 2018. The women’s program finished third in the outdoor meet this year after winning the championship in 2004.
The legacy award will go to former Kansas volleyball coach Ray Bechard, who announced his retirement after last season. Bechard coached the Jayhawks for 27 seasons, leading the program to 13 NCAA Tournaments and the national semifinals in 2015. He finished with a career record of 496-313.