Laurent Duvernay-Tardif named ESPN's Sports Humanitarian of the year

Kansas City guard and doctorLaurent Duvernay-Tardif is being honoured for his decision to opt out of the 2020 NFL season to pitch in at a long-term care home in Montreal to help fight the COVID-19 pandemic.

On Saturday night, the Mont-Saint-Hilaire, Que., native was namedthe recipient of ESPN'sMuhammad AliSports Humanitarianof the Year at the 2021 ESPY Awards.

"Being a professional athlete comes with a lot of privileges but also a responsibility to use your platform to have a positive impact in your community," the 30-year-old wrote in a Twitter post.

"Winning this award for my work off the field is a huge honor."

The award is givento "an athlete whose continuous, demonstrated leadership has created a measured positive impact on their community through sports. The candidate must embrace the core principles that Muhammad Ali embodied so well, including confidence, conviction, dedication, giving and respect," according to ESPN.

Duvernay-Tardifearned a degree in medicine from McGill University, but hasyet to get his license to practice. Still,he left the NFL in July of 2020,fresh off a Super Bowl win, towork as an orderly in a CHSLD.

"Five years from now, I'm going to be able to look at 2020 and be like, 'Alright, I followed my conviction and I made a move that I'm going to be proud of,'" he told CBC in January.

WATCH | Duvernay-Tardif describes working in long-term care home:

It's about comfort and dignity, says Canadian NFL player on working in long-term care home

4 years ago

Duration 1:54

Quebec's Laurent Duvernay-Tardif of the Kansas City Chiefs opted out of the NFL season to work in a long-term care home during the COVID-19 pandemic. He talks to Matt Galloway of CBC Radio's The Current about what he learned.

The former McGill offensive lineman was also named the co-winner of the Lou Marsh award for Canada's top athlete last year.

Now, he'sback on the field inKansas City, trying help his teamwin its third Super Bowl.