Another week, another milestone achievement for Caitlin Clark, only this one was an off-the-court honor.
The Iowa women’s basketball alum and Indiana Fever guard was named the 2024 TIME’s Athlete of the Year, the magazine announced on Tuesday.
Another week, another milestone achievement for Caitlin Clark, only this one was an off-the-court honor.
The Iowa women’s basketball alum and Indiana Fever guard was named the 2024 TIME’s Athlete of the Year, the magazine announced on Tuesday.
Caitlin Clark is TIME’s Athlete of the Year https://t.co/WtgLuIIYhb pic.twitter.com/oGDewhUPcB
— TIME (@TIME) December 10, 2024
She joins Lionel Messi, Aaron Judge, Simone Biles, and LeBron James as some prominent sports figures to win the award.
“I’ve been able to captivate so many people that have never watched women’s sports, let alone women’s basketball, and turn them into fans,” Clark said. “People are invested in the game, they love the game, and that’s what makes it so fun for me. These people aren’t supporting women’s sports to check a box. It’s going to be the new normal.”
This comes after a historic first-year campaign that saw Clark secure the 2024 Rookie of the Year award and All-Star and First-Team All-WNBA honors after averaging 19.2 points, a league-high 8.4 assists, 5.7 rebounds, and 1.3 steals on 41.7/34.4/90.6 shooting splits in 40 appearances for the Fever.
After setting numerous viewership records as a member of the Iowa women’s basketball team, she brought her fanbase with her to the professional ranks, resulting in an all-time WNBA record of more than 54 million unique viewers across ABC, ESPN, ESPN2, ION, and NBA TV.
In addition to the high increase in TV ratings, the WNBA had its highest total attendance in 22 years with 2,353,735 in-person fans, up 48 percent from the 2023 season. The Indiana Fever led the league with an average attendance of 16,083 spectators, 5,000 more than the 2024 WNBA champion New York Liberty.
To put this in perspective, Indiana finished 11th out of 12 teams with an average attendance of 4,067, meaning the franchise quadrupled its ticket sales in Clark’s first year. Also, the Las Vegas Aces led the league in 2023 with an average attendance of 8,591.
The 2024 season featured seven teams whose average attendance finished above the 2023 Aces team and six teams finishing with an average of at least 10,000 fans. However, no other team finished above 11,000 average attendance but the Fever.
Clark’s impact on women’s basketball as a whole is undeniable. But to her, it’s bigger than the sport.
“I’m just scratching the surface of what I can do and hopefully how I can change the world and impact people.”
She joins Lionel Messi, Aaron Judge, Simone Biles, and LeBron James as some prominent sports figures to win the award.
“I’ve been able to captivate so many people that have never watched women’s sports, let alone women’s basketball, and turn them into fans,” Clark said. “People are invested in the game, they love the game, and that’s what makes it so fun for me. These people aren’t supporting women’s sports to check a box. It’s going to be the new normal.”
This comes after a historic first-year campaign that saw Clark secure the 2024 Rookie of the Year award and All-Star and First-Team All-WNBA honors after averaging 19.2 points, a league-high 8.4 assists, 5.7 rebounds, and 1.3 steals on 41.7/34.4/90.6 shooting splits in 40 appearances for the Fever.
After setting numerous viewership records as a member of the Iowa women’s basketball team, she brought her fanbase with her to the professional ranks, resulting in an all-time WNBA record of more than 54 million unique viewers across ABC, ESPN, ESPN2, ION, and NBA TV.
In addition to the high increase in TV ratings, the WNBA had its highest total attendance in 22 years with 2,353,735 in-person fans, up 48 percent from the 2023 season. The Indiana Fever led the league with an average attendance of 16,083 spectators, 5,000 more than the 2024 WNBA champion New York Liberty.
To put this in perspective, Indiana finished 11th out of 12 teams with an average attendance of 4,067, meaning the franchise quadrupled its ticket sales in Clark’s first year. Also, the Las Vegas Aces led the league in 2023 with an average attendance of 8,591.
The 2024 season featured seven teams whose average attendance finished above the 2023 Aces team and six teams finishing with an average of at least 10,000 fans. However, no other team finished above 11,000 average attendance but the Fever.
Clark’s impact on women’s basketball as a whole is undeniable. But to her, it’s bigger than the sport.
“I’m just scratching the surface of what I can do and hopefully how I can change the world and impact people.”