The title of top amateur athlete will be put to a vote this week, as eight elite athletes – Maia and Alex Shibutani, Angela Peavy, Annika Albrecht, Kelly Hunter, Joel Berry II, Kyle Snyder and Erin Finn – were announced today as finalists for the 88th AAU James E. Sullivan Award.

The AAU Sullivan Award has been presented annually since 1930 to the most outstanding amateur athlete in the United States. Past winners include decorated Olympians Jackie Joyner-Kersee (1986), Michael Phelps (2003) and Shawn Johnson (2008). Former UCLA basketball star Bill Walton (1973), University of Tennessee quarterback Peyton Manning (1997) and Ezekiel Elliott (2014) have also earned the prestigious honor.

“We are proud to have athletes representing such a wide array of sports as finalists for this year’s AAU James E. Sullivan Award,” said Dr. Roger J. Goudy, President/CEO of the AAU. “The AAU is the largest multi-sport organization in the world, so we are thrilled to provide a venue for this elite class of finalists to compete for the title of top amateur athlete.”

Voting for the award is open to the public at www.aausullivan.org. Finalist voting opens Friday, March 23 and will close on Thursday, March 29 at 11:59 p.m. The winner will be announced at the AAU James E. Sullivan Award Ceremony on April 17 at the New York Athletic Club in Manhattan.

This year’s event will be hosted by 1981 AAU Sullivan Award winner Carl Lewis.