Watch live as Biden presents Medal of Freedom to civil rights leaders, celebrities and politicians

Watch live as Joe Biden honours 19 Americans with the nation’s highest civilian honour, the Presidential Medal of Freedom, on Friday 3 May.

A winner of seven Olympic gold medals, a leader of the Mississippi civil rights struggle and a pioneer of television’s tabloid talk show genre are part of this year’s class of recipients.

The honorees list plays special homage to “firsts” in their field, including the Everything Everywhere All at Once actress Michelle Yeoh, who was the first Asian to win the Academy Award for Best Actress.

Ellen Ochoa, the first Hispanic woman in space and the late Jim Thorpe, the versatile athlete who became the first Native American to win an Olympic gold medal in 1912, will be honoured.

Mr Biden also included some key political allies in the Democratic Party, from Representative Jim Clyburn, who rescued his 2020 presidential primary bid, to Nancy Pelosi, who shepherded his legislative agenda through Congress as House of Representatives speaker until last year.

The awards will be handed out at the White House.