College basketball star Caitlin Clark wins Sullivan Award
It was Caitlin Clark’s first visit to New York City. Although the college basketball star who propelled the University of Iowa to the title game in the 2023 NCAA Division I Women’s Basketball Tournament was only in town for 24 hours, it was a memorable time because she was named recipient of the 93rd Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) James E. Sullivan Award at the New York Athletic Club (NYAC) last week. In addition to athletic excellence, the Sullivan Award recognizes qualities of leadership, character, and sportsmanship on and off the field of play. It is presented annually to the most outstanding athlete at the collegiate or Olympic level in the U.S.
“It’s kind of a full circle moment; I grew up playing a lot of AAU sports—softball, basketball, soccer,” said Clark, whose father was her first-ever AAU basketball coach. “The reason I went to Iowa was to be able to do something different and take them to a place they really hadn’t been… I hope I can continue to push women’s sport forward and be an advocate.”
The other finalists were Dylan Crews, a baseball player at LSU who is now with the Washington Nationals; Jordan Chiles, a collegiate gymnast at UCLA (unable to attend due to the trials for the World Championships); Jordan Crooks, a swimmer for the University of Tennessee; Zach Edey, a basketball player with Purdue University; and Kate Douglass, a swimmer and recent graduate of the University of Virginia who began her swimming career at a swimming club affiliated with the NYAC.
Other memorable moments of last week’s Sullivan Award event included a keynote speech by Leon Carter, editor-at-large of The Athletic and co-director of the Sports Journalism Institute, a nine-week training program for aspiring sports journalists with an emphasis on minorities and women.“You will see people who will not be with you,” Carter said. “Stand tall in the face of adversity. When people say you can’t do something, stand tall.”
The AAU’s Humanitarian Award went to NYPD Chief of Department Jeffrey Maddrey, who has worked with the AAU for several years on organizing sports programs for young people in NYC. This year’s AAU Urban Initiative featured three-on-three basketball courts in Time Square.
“Through this partnership with AAU, this platform, I was able to pull together resources and create opportunities,” said Maddrey. “Boys and girls together playing basketball…We have to think of something bigger for next year!”
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