Caitlin Clark credits Italian roots for gaining resilience through failures: "It gave me that competitive fire"

Caitlin Clark has rapidly become one of the most popular athletes in the world of sports. She took the WNBA by storm, shattering records and making a big impact for the Indiana Fever.

Then again, her easy-going and down-to-earth nature off the court is in contrast to her tough persona on it. Notably, that might come from her family.

In an appearance at the "2024 Massachusetts Conference for Women" on Dec. 12, Clark said that coming from an Italian family, she had no choice but to toughen up against the older, bigger and better competition:

"I always had to find a way to hold my own," Clark said. "Whether it was older cousins, whether it was the boys I was playing with, whether I was playing other big girls, whatever it was.

"So, I think that's what kind of drove me, and I failed a lot because people were older or people were better, and I couldn't stand that. And I think that's what kind of gave me that competitive passion and that fire."

Caitlin Clark claims she's privileged

Caitlin Clark has put in a lot of work to be where she is now. Unfortunately, she's also been tangled up in a racial discourse, being a white woman in a league that's mostly black.

She spoke about the complex situation to TIME on Dec. 10.

“I want to say I’ve earned every single thing, but as a white person, there is privilege," Clark said. “A lot of those players in the league that have been really good have been black players. This league has kind of been built on them.

"The more we can appreciate that, highlight that, talk about that, and then continue to have brands and companies invest in those players that have made this league incredible, I think it’s very important. I have to continue to try to change that. The more we can elevate black women, that’s going to be a beautiful thing.”

Caitlin Clark's game transcends color, or at least it should. She's objectively one of the best players in the WNBA already. Hopefully, people will be able to look past the color of her skin and only focus on what actually matters, which is her skills.