Caitlin Clark, a member of the Iowa Hawkeyes in the Big Ten Conference, has earned three gold medals in youth international competitions for the United States. Recently, she was honored as the Most Valuable Player at the 2021 FIBA Under-19 Women’s Basketball World Cup.
Caitlin Clark Bio Summary
Name: Caitlin Clark
Profession: College Basketball Player
Age: 22 years old (2024)
Date of birth: 22 January 2002
Place of birth: Des Moines, Iowa, U.S.
Religion: Christian
Nationality: American
Father’s name: Brent Clark
Mother’s name: Anne Nizzi-Clark
Eye color: Black
Hair color: Black
Height: 6 ft
Weight: 70 kg
Early Life & Education
Caitlin Clark, who was born on January 22, 2002, is a remarkable athlete in American college basketball. She currently represents the Iowa Hawkeyes in the Big Ten Conference.
Clark started playing basketball at the age of 5. According to Hawk Fanatic, Caitlin had to join a boys’ basketball team when she first started playing because her dad couldn’t find a girls’ team in her age group. During one game, her grandfather noticed that a boy was being overly aggressive towards her, causing Caitlin to become emotional and cry.
Her grandfather, Bob Nizzi, recalled,
“She went right to this guy and put on the best downfield block that I have ever seen and rolled this kid out of bounds and stood over him. She’s a five-year old little girl and that is when her grandmother and I looked at each other and said, ‘she’s going to be really something.’”
While attending Dowling Catholic High School in West Des Moines, Iowa, Clark was highly regarded as one of the best recruits in her year and earned the title of McDonald’s All-American.
When she was in sixth grade, she joined an AAU team located in Ames, Iowa, the same city where Iowa State University is located. She remained on the team for seven years until she finished high school in 2020.
Despite having the option to stay in Ames and play for Iowa State, Caitlin Clark chose to attend Iowa for college. She declined offers from Notre Dame and Texas and opted to join the Hawkeyes instead.
Family
Caitlin’s father, Brent Clark, holds the position of sales executive at Concentric International and was a college athlete at Simpson College, playing both baseball and basketball. Her mother, Anne Nizzi Clark, is a former marketing executive.
Her mother is from an Italian background and is the daughter of Bob Nizzi, a former football coach at Dowling Catholic High School.
She has two siblings, an older brother named Blake who played football at Iowa State, and a younger brother named Colin. Her cousin Audrey Faber played basketball at Drake and Utica, and her cousin Mike Nizzi played football at Nebraska Omaha.
College Football & Achievements
During her initial year playing for Iowa, she achieved the highest scoring record in NCAA Division I, was recognized as a top freshman in the country, and was awarded All-American accolades.
In her second year, Caitlin Clark made history as the first female player to top the charts in both points and assists in a single season in Division I, earning unanimous recognition as a first-team All-American.
During her third year as a college student, Clark achieved the titles of AP Player of the Year, Naismith College Player of the Year, and Wade Trophy winner.
She was also named a unanimous first-team All-American for the second time. On top of these accolades, she has also been honored with two Dawn Staley Awards and one Nancy Lieberman Award for being the best player in her position in Division I.
In addition, Caitlin Clark has achieved three gold medals for the United States while competing at the youth international level and was granted the Most Valuable Player honor at the 2021 FIBA Under-19 Women’s Basketball World Cup.
In 2017, Caitlin achieved a gold medal for the women’s basketball team at the FIBA Americas Under-16 Championship in Argentina.
She also won gold for the women’s basketball squad at the FIBA Under-19 World Cup in Thailand in 2019. Most recently, in 2021, Clark earned a gold medal for the women’s basketball team at the FIBA Under-19 World Cup in Hungary.
Caitlin achieved numerous accolades in 2021, including being chosen as Second-Team All-American by AP and USBWA. She was also recognized as the USBWAS National Co-Freshman of the Year and WBCA Co-Freshman of the Year.
Additionally, she was voted as the Big Ten Freshman of the Year and selected as a McDonald’s All-American. In 2020, Caitlin Clark was crowned Iowa Miss Basketball. Furthermore, she was named the FIBA Under-19 World Cup MVP in 2021.
Personal Life
Caitlin Clark is currently in a romantic relationship with Connor McCaffery, who is not only a fellow basketball player, but also a former Hawkeye.
Their relationship became known to the public in August of 2023 when Clark shared a picture of the two on her Instagram account. She wrote a caption for a series of photos that showed the two of them snuggled together on a boat.
“Best end to summer”
