Caitlin Clark wasn’t in attendance for the 2024 EPSY Awards, but she still had a big night.
The WNBA star, 22, won two awards — the first of which she earned during the Thursday, July 11, red carpet broadcast. She took home the trophy for Best College Athlete Women’s Sports before Serena Williams took the stage to host the show.
Once the awards ceremony got underway, Clark received her second award for Best Record-Breaking Performance, beating out the NFL’s Christian McCaffrey. Despite being out of state, she shared a virtual message for her acceptance speech.
“I just wanted to say thank you for this recognition. Obviously, I could not be there tonight,” she told the audience, noting, “I’m a little bit busy in Indianapolis.”
She gushed: “This award means a lot not only to myself but to my teammates and coaches that I had at the University of Iowa. It’s special for all of us and it was a special year in women’s athletics. Thank you, ESPN.”
Clark concluded, “I just want to give a shout-out to all the nominees and award winners tonight. I’m sad I couldn’t be there but I hope you all have an amazing night.”
Ahead of the event, Clark was the most nominated athlete, racking up three nods for Best Athlete, Women’s Sports, Best College Athlete, Women’s Sports and Best Record-Breaking Performance for becoming the NCAA’s All-Time Scoring Leader.
Clark’s popularity has been on the rise since her impressive run playing college basketball at the University of Iowa. In April, she was selected as the No. 1 overall pick in the 2024 WNBA draft, and she made her professional debut with the Indiana Fever the following month.
Despite her ubiquity as of late, Clark did not make the U.S. women’s basketball team for the 2024 Paris Olympics. In June, she reacted to being left off of the roster.
“I’m excited for the girls [who] are on the team,” Clark told Indy Star sports reporter Chloe Peterson at the time. “I know it’s the most competitive team in the world and I know it could have gone either way with me being on the team [or] me not being on the team. I’m excited for them.”
She added: “I’m going to be rooting them on to win gold. I was a kid that grew up watching the Olympics, so it’ll be fun to watch them.”
Clark insisted that she had “no disappointment” over not earning a spot on the team.
“I think it gives you something to work for. You know, it’s a dream and hopefully one day I’ll be there,” she continued. “I think it’s just a little more motivation … and hopefully in four years — when four years comes back around — I can be there.”
Amid her growing impact on the sports world, some have criticized Clark’s popularity, claiming that her race has factored into it. However, Stephen A. Smith defended Clark in an exclusive interview with Us Weekly.
“I think, as a society, we have to grow up,” he said in May. “Race is always a component we can’t ignore, but it doesn’t always have to be negative. When you look at Caitlin Clark — yes, she’s white, and yes, she’s getting a level of shine that others before her didn’t get who happened to be Black and they were terrific players — but that’s an indictment against society.”
Smith, 56, noted that the media “is going to go where the story is” and Clark “has done a phenomenal job turning herself into a story,” adding, “She happens to be white, but also happens to be a terrific basketball player, a terrific person with terrific family background with terrific marketability assets.”
