Below are the nominees and winners for the BET Award for Best Female Athlete & Male Athlete. Serena Williams

Serena Williams

Serena Jameka Williams is an American professional tennis player and a former world no. 1. The Women's Tennis Association has ranked her world no. 1 in singles on five separate occasions. She became the world no. 1 for the first time on July 8, 2002 and regained this ranking for the fifth time on...

 holds the record for most wins in the Female Athlete category with 5 wins, she also holds the record for the most nominations, being nominated every year since the awards inception. LeBron James

LeBron James

LeBron Raymone James is an American professional basketball player for the Miami Heat of the National Basketball Association . Nicknamed "King James", he was a three-time "Mr. Basketball" of Ohio in high school, and was highly promoted in the national media as a future NBA superstar while a...

 holds the records with 4 wins for Male Athlete. Kobe Bryant comes in second place with 3 awards. The best male has always been a basketball player until Michael Vick won it in 2011.

Best Female Athlete

Year	Winner	Nominees
2009	Serena Williams	Candace Parker Venus Williams Lisa Leslie Tamika Catchings
2008	Candace Parker Candace Parker Candace Nicole Parker is an All-American basketball player for the WNBA's Los Angeles Sparks and is also the younger sister of NBA player Anthony Parker. She was drafted to the team from Tennessee in 2008...	Cheryl Ford Serena Williams Venus Williams Tamika Catchings
2007	Serena Williams	Swin Cash Swin Cash Swintayla Marie Cash , better known as Swin Cash, is an American WNBA player who plays for the Seattle Storm. A prolific scorer and rebounder, as well as a capable ball handler and defender, she helped lead the University of Connecticut women's basketball team to national titles in 2000 and 2002... Tamika Catchings Tamika Catchings Tamika Devonne Catchings is an American professional basketball player for the Indiana Fever of the WNBA and Turkish team Galatasaray. She is a prolific scorer close to and far from the basket, as well as a capable rebounder, ball handler, and defender. After playing at Adlai E... Lisa Leslie Gail Devers
2006	Venus Williams	Serena Williams Lisa Leslie Sheryl Swoopes Chamique Holdsclaw Chamique Holdsclaw Chamique Shaunta Holdsclaw is a professional basketball player in the Women's National Basketball Association most recently under a contract with the San Antonio Silver Stars...
2005	Serena Williams	Gail Devers Gail Devers Yolanda Gail Devers is a retired three-time Olympic champion in track and field for the US Olympic Team. Devers was born in Seattle, Washington, and grew up near National City, California and graduated from Sweetwater High School in 1984... Lisa Leslie Venus Williams Laila Ali
2004	Serena Williams	Cheryl Ford Cheryl Ford Cheryl Ford is a professional basketball player in the WNBA.-Personal information:Cheryl Ford is the daughter of Bonita Ford and former NBA player Karl Malone.-High school:... Lisa Leslie Laila Ali Venus Williams
2003	Serena Williams	Sheryl Swoopes Lisa Leslie Laila Ali Venus Williams
2002	Laila Ali Laila Ali Laila Amaria Ali is a retired American professional boxer. She is the daughter of boxing legend Muhammad Ali from his third wife Veronica Porsche Ali.-Boxing career:...	Lisa Leslie Lisa Leslie Lisa Deshaun Leslie-Lockwood is a former American professional women's basketball player in the WNBA. She is a three-time WNBA MVP and a four-time Olympic gold medal winner... Vonetta Flowers Vonetta Flowers Vonetta Flowers is an American bobsledder and athlete. Flowers was a star sprinter and long jumper at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, and originally aspired to make the U.S. Summer Olympic Team... Venus Williams Serena Williams
2001	Marion Jones Marion Jones Marion Lois Jones , also known as Marion Jones-Thompson, is a former world champion track and field athlete, and a former professional basketball player for Tulsa Shock in the WNBA...	Venus Williams Venus Williams Venus Ebony Starr Williams is an American professional tennis player who is a former World No. 1 and is ranked World No. 101 as of 10 October 2011 in singles and World No. 20 in doubles as of 2011. She has been ranked World No. 1 in singles by the Women's Tennis Association on three separate... Serena Williams Serena Williams Serena Jameka Williams is an American professional tennis player and a former world no. 1. The Women's Tennis Association has ranked her world no. 1 in singles on five separate occasions. She became the world no. 1 for the first time on July 8, 2002 and regained this ranking for the fifth time on... Sheryl Swoopes Sheryl Swoopes Sheryl Denise Swoopes is an American professional basketball player who, subsequent to being waived into free agency, signed to re-join the WNBA to play with the Tulsa Shock in 2011. She was the first player to be signed in the WNBA when it was created. She has won three Olympic Gold Medals and...

Best Male Athlete

Kobe Bryant
Carmelo Anthony
LeBron James>

2009	LeBron James	Reggie Bush Dwyane Wade Tiger Woods Kobe Bryant
2008	Kobe Bryant	Chris Paul Chris Paul Christopher Emmanuel Paul is an American professional basketball point guard for the New Orleans Hornets.Paul was born and raised in North Carolina. Despite only playing two varsity basketball seasons in high school, he was a McDonald's All-American and accepted a scholarship with nearby Wake... LeBron James Tiger Woods Floyd Mayweather Jr.
2007	LeBron James	Reggie Bush Reggie Bush Reginald Alfred "Reggie" Bush II is an American football running back for the Miami Dolphins of the National Football League. He was drafted by the New Orleans Saints in the first round of the 2006 NFL Draft... Floyd Mayweather Jr. Floyd Mayweather Jr. Floyd Joy Mayweather, Jr. is an American professional boxer. He is a five-division world champion, where he has won seven world titles, as well as the lineal championship in three different weight classes... Dwyane Wade Dwyane Wade Dwyane Tyrone Wade, Jr. nicknamed Flash or D-Wade, is an American professional basketball player for the Miami Heat. Awarded 2006 Sportsman of the Year by Sports Illustrated, Wade has established himself as one of the most well-known and popular players in the league... Tiger Woods
2006	LeBron James	Vince Young Vince Young Vincent Paul Young, Jr. , nicknamed "VY", is an American football quarterback for the Philadelphia Eagles of the National Football League . He spent the first five seasons of his career with the Tennessee Titans. Young was the third overall draft pick in the 2006 NFL Draft. He played college... Kobe Byrant Tiger Woods Shaquille O'Neal
2005	Shaquille O'Neal	Tiger Woods LeBron James Donovan McNabb Donovan McNabb Donovan Jamal McNabb is an American football quarterback who is currently a free agent. He was the Philadelphia Eagles' quarterback from 1999 to 2009 and spent the 2010 season with the Washington Redskins and a portion of the 2011 season with the Minnesota Vikings. In college, McNabb played... Allen Iverson
2004	LeBron James LeBron James LeBron Raymone James is an American professional basketball player for the Miami Heat of the National Basketball Association . Nicknamed "King James", he was a three-time "Mr. Basketball" of Ohio in high school, and was highly promoted in the national media as a future NBA superstar while a...	Barry Bonds Carmelo Anthony Carmelo Anthony Carmelo Kiyan Anthony , nicknamed "Melo", is an American professional basketball player who currently plays for the New York Knicks in the National Basketball Association... Tiger Woods Shaquille O'Neal
2003	Kobe Bryant	Tiger Woods Barry Bonds Barry Bonds Barry Lamar Bonds is an American former Major League Baseball outfielder. Bonds played from 1986 to 2007, for the Pittsburgh Pirates and San Francisco Giants. He is the son of former major league All-Star Bobby Bonds... Allen Iverson Tracy McGrady Tracy McGrady Tracy Lamar McGrady, Jr., is an American professional basketball player who last played for the Detroit Pistons.Entering the league after graduating from high school, McGrady eventually became a seven-time All-Star. He led the league in scoring in 2003 and 2004. He has also played for the Toronto...
2002	Kobe Bryant	Tiger Woods Derek Jeter Derek Jeter Derek Sanderson Jeter is an American baseball shortstop who has played 17 years in Major League Baseball for the New York Yankees. A twelve-time All-Star and five-time World Series champion, Jeter's clubhouse presence, on-field leadership, hitting ability, and baserunning have made him a central... Allen Iverson Michael Jordan Michael Jordan Michael Jeffrey Jordan is a former American professional basketball player, active entrepreneur, and majority owner of the Charlotte Bobcats...
2001	Allen Iverson Allen Iverson Allen Ezail Iverson is an American professional basketball point guard and shooting guard. He was selected by the Philadelphia 76ers with the number one pick in the 1996 NBA Draft. He was named the NBA Rookie of the Year in the 1996–97 season...	Tiger Woods Tiger Woods Eldrick Tont "Tiger" Woods is an American professional golfer whose achievements to date rank him among the most successful golfers of all time. Formerly the World No... Kobe Bryant Kobe Bryant Kobe Bean Bryant is an American professional basketball player who plays shooting guard for the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association . Bryant enjoyed a successful high school basketball career at Lower Merion High School, where he was recognized as the top high school... Shaquille O'Neal Shaquille O'Neal Shaquille Rashaun O'Neal , nicknamed "Shaq" , is a former American professional basketball player. Standing tall and weighing , he was one of the heaviest players ever to play in the NBA...

Controversy

Some of the nominations have brought up some controversy. Reggie Bush was nominated for the award twice, in 2007 and 2009, despite putting up average numbers for a player at his position in both those seasons. In both years, he was nominated among athletes who were considered the best of the best in their sports, which upset some sports fans, as Bush has not accomplished enough to be in the same list as them.