On Monday, ESPN announced that this year's recipient of the Arthur Ashe Courage Award at the ESPYs would be Caitlyn Jenner.
The photo reads:
Caitlyn Jenner won the Arthur Ashe Courage Award. The runner up was this guy: Army Veteran Noah Galloway, who lost an arm and a leg to a roadside bomb in Iraq, and now competes in Crossfit events, runs marathons, and competed in the 58-hour Death Race.
For those unfamiliar, Galloway is a war veteran who lost his arm and leg in Iraq. He recently gained fame by competing on ABC's Dancing With the Stars.
People were outraged by the claim that Galloway was chosen as "runner-up" to Jenner.
The guy on the left won Arthur Ashe Courage Award. The guy on the right was runner up. RT 2 make Noah Galloway famous
Some blasted ESPN as a "disgrace."
@espn awards a man who decided 2 b a woman the Arthur Ashe Courage Award instead of Noah Galloway..disgraceful.
They insisted Galloway was much "braver" than Jenner...
Sooooooooo #CaitlynJenner is BRAVE huh?? I salute you #NoahGalloway you are the EPITOME of Bravery!!!
And, in doing so, insisted Jenner wasn't brave at all.
@Noah_Galloway you're the true winner!! You have more courage in 2 limbs than #BruceJenner has in HIS entire body! 💪🏼
There is even a Change.org petition.
ESPN: Give the 2014 Arthur Ashe Award for Courage to Noah Galloway and not Bruce Jenner https://t.co/dZTt9eb2ho via @Change
The only problem is this rumor is completely untrue. ESPN confirmed to BuzzFeed News there is no such thing as a "runner-up" to the Arthur Ashe Courage Award.
The fact-checking website Snopes traced the origin of the rumor back to a tweet from radio host Gerry Callahan on Monday.
Caitlyn Jenner wins Arthur Ashe Courage Award. And the runner-up is ....
It's unclear if Callahan meant the tweet as a joke, but he has continued to say on Twitter that Jenner doesn't deserve the award.
Did she ever shave her Adam's apple? https://t.co/uauc6ubu9F
Callahan did not respond to a request for comment from BuzzFeed News.
Many people on Twitter also insisted that Lauren Hill, a college basketball player who died this year from cancer, deserved the award over Jenner.
Lauren Hill deserves the ESPY award for courage, and it should not even be a discussion. What an absolute embarrassment. #LaurenHillESPY
#CaitlynJenner spent money on her own surgery. #LaurenHillESPY raised $1M+ to help others. Who deserves the @ESPYS? http://t.co/PYLdlmi7Nw
Not one of you could look Lauren Hill in the eye and tell her she isn't more deserving of this award. 😕🏀💟#LaurenHillESPY #NeverGiveUp
An ESPN spokeswoman said in a statement to BuzzFeed News that there were "many worthy candidates" for the award.
She said:
The Arthur Ashe Courage Award is meant to honor individuals whose contributions transcend sports through courageous action. Sometimes that courage is demonstrated over the course of a lifetime and sometimes it is demonstrated in a single act that shines a light on an important contemporary issue. At all times, there are many worthy candidates. This year, we are proud to honor Caitlyn Jenner embracing her identity and doing so in a public way to help move forward a constructive dialogue about progress and acceptance.