Simone Biles to receive Presidential Medal of Freedom

Olympic gold medalist Simone Biles is among 17 civilians who will be honored with the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the White House announced Friday.

At the age of 25, Biles will become the youngest athlete ever to receive the honor.

Recognized as the nation’s highest civilian honor, the award is presented to individuals who have made exemplary contributions to the prosperity, values, or security of the United States, world peace, or other significant societal, public or private endeavors.

Biles, the most decorated American gymnast in history, has won a combined 32 Olympic and World Championship medals. In recent years, she’s become a prominent advocate for athletes’ mental health and safety, children in the foster care system, and victims of sexual assault.

The awards will be presented at the White House on July 7.

Complete list of recipients:

Simone Biles

Sister Simone Campbell

Dr. Julieta García

Former Congresswoman Gabby Giffords

Fred Gray

Steve Jobs

Father Alexander Karloutsos

Khizr Khanis

Sandra Lindsayis

John McCain

Diane Nash

Megan Rapinoe

Alan Simpson

Richard Trumka

Wilma Vaught

Denzel Washington

Raúl Yzaguirre

Michael Jordan & Kareem Abdul-Jabbar to get Presidential Medal of Freedom

NBA greats Michael Jordan and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar along with Cicely Tyson and Diana Ross are among the 21 recipients of this years Presidential Medal of Freedom being awarded for the last time by President Obama.

The other recipients are Vin Scully, Ellen DeGeneres, Diana Ross, Bruce Springsteen, Robert DeNiro, Tom Hanks, Robert Redford, Bill and Melinda Gates, polymath physicist Richard Garwin, architect Frank Gehry, designer Maya Lin, “Saturday Night Live” producer Lorne Michaels, attorney Newt Minow, mathematician and computer scientist Margaret H. Hamilton,Eduardo Padrón, president of Miami Dade College in Florida, Native American advocate Elouise Cobell and Rear Adm. Grace Hopper.

The Presidential Medal of Freedom is an award bestowed by the President of the United States and is—along with the comparable Congressional Gold Medal—the highest civilian award of the United States. It recognizes those individuals who have made "an especially meritorious contribution to the security or national interests of the United States, world peace, cultural or other significant public or private endeavors".