WNBA sensation Caitlin Clark has been announced as TIME's Athlete of the Year.
At just 22 years old, the Indiana Fever rookie joins an illustrious roster of past honourees, including LeBron James, Simone Biles and Michael Phelps, in what is a defining achievement in her debut season.
This comes following the WNBA's most successful season to date, breaking viewership, attendance, subscription and merchandise sale records.
In her corresponding TIME cover interview, Clark commented on her contribution to the league's success.
โI'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,โ she said.
Describing her year as โhistoricโ, Clark's impact is undeniable. Her college championship showdown between her hometown of Iowa and South Carolina drew an average of 18.9 million viewers, making it the second most-watched women's sporting event in U.S. television history, excluding the Olympics.
In a groundbreaking moment, the women's NCAA championship outpaced the men's in viewership for the first time ever.
Turning pro in April, Clark's meteoric rise only accelerated from there. She set a rookie record for most three-pointers made in a season, while also setting new all-time WNBA marks for most assists in a season and most assists in a single game.
Amid all the success, TIME's announcement marked the first time Clark addressed her controversial exclusion from this year's Olympic team.
โThey were like, โYeah, we haven't selected you. Obviously, we think the world of how you play and blah, blah, blah,โ Clark recalled of the moment she found out.
In response to public outrage over how her exclusion cost the sport a chance to leverage her global popularity, she said: โI want to be there because they think I'm good enough. I don't want to be some little person that is kind of dragged around for people to cheer about and only watch because I'm sitting on the bench.โ
The WNBA's rising popularity, driven in large part by Clark and fellow rookies Angel Reese and Cameron Brink, has not been without its challenges.
The competition's financial struggles continued despite the success, with a reported $50 million (USD) loss. In response, the league announced an 11-year media rights deal valued at $2.2 billion (USD), partnering with Disney, Amazon Prime Video and NBCUniversal.
Among the additional challenges brought by the surge in visibility are an uptick in racially motivated harassment, and concerns over player safety and mental health.
โI'm probably the most popular player in the league at the moment, and somebody a lot of people turn to to have a voice on this type of stuff,โ said Clark.
โI hope we can do a better job as a league of protecting our players and putting better resources around them to make it a safer environment.โ
As the WNBA navigates the challenges and opportunities that next season's heightened attention will bring, Clark, bolstered by a stellar rookie campaign and her Athlete of the Year title, emerges as the league's guiding force.
