PETALING JAYA: Tan Sri Michelle Yeoh (pic) has joined 18 others to receive the Presidential Medal of Freedom from US President Joe Biden.
The award is America’s highest civilian award.
According to Reuters, Yeoh, who was the first Asian to win an Academy Award for Best Actress, was on the recipient list that gave special recognition to “firsts” in their fields, including Ellen Ochoa, the first Hispanic woman in space, and Jim Thorpe, the versatile athlete who became the first Native American to win an Olympic gold medal in 1912.
Other recipients included former US senator Elizabeth Dole, former vice-president Al Gore, one-time secretary of state John Kerry, and the previous New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg.
The awards ceremony will be held at the White House in Washington DC on Friday.
The Presidential Medal of Freedom is awarded to both civilians and military personnel and is not limited to US citizens.
In an executive order establishing it in 1963, then US President John F. Kennedy said the medal would be bestowed by decision of the US president, and that it was to recognise people 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 endeavours”.
In March 2023, Yeoh made history as the first Asian and Malaysian to win an Oscar for her role in the movie Everything Everywhere All At Once.
