Wednesday night, the ESPY Awards were held in Los Angeles, California. They were hosted by NBA Finals MVP Stephen Curry, who kept the crowd on their toes with some hilarious jokes. Kevin Hart of course had his hand in that. But every year, one of the best moments of the evening is when the Arthur Ashe Courage Award is handed out. This year, the recipient for arguably the most prestigious award of the night belonged to Vitali Klitschko.

Klitschko is a former heavyweight world champion and currently the Mayor of Kiev, Ukraine. Of course, Ukraine is still in the middle of an awful war with Russia. The whole world has watched as Russian forced marched into Ukraine unprovoked, bombing cities filled with civilians, along with military installments.

Much of the world feared that Ukraine would succumb relatively quickly to the Russian onslaught. Instead, they have shown an unbreakable spirit and will, led by President Volodymyr Zelensky. Klitschko, who has been the Mayor of Kiev since 2014, has been a very vocal critic of Vladimir Putin going back a decade.

But during this present conflict, Vitali Klitschko, alongside his brother, Wladimir, have actually taken up arms against the Russians. Vitali released a statement, captured by ESPN, amid the news that he was going to be presented with this honor.

“It is a great honor for me to receive this award… I am convinced that this is a recognition of the courage and inviolability of the Ukrainian people, who have been bravely resisting the Russian aggressor for more than 3 months. This is an award for everyone who defends the independence and freedom of Ukraine.”