Coco Gauff was chosen as one of 12 “extraordinary leaders … working toward a more equal world,” as per the magazine.
Coco Gauff is one of the most impactful women in the world, according to TIME. The 19-year-old US Open champion was named on Wednesday to the magazine’s 2024 Women of the Year list, which honors “extraordinary leaders working towards a more equal world.”
The list has been compiled by TIME since 2022, and Gauff is the youngest woman and only athlete among this year’s 12 selections, which also include “Barbie” director Greta Gerwig, Nobel Laureate Claudia Goldin and climate activist Jacqui Patterson. Allyson Felix, Megan Rapione and Ramla Ali are other athletes who’ve previously earned inclusion.
“Creating a better future for women means building bridges—across generations, communities, and borders,” the magazine writes. “These extraordinary leaders are working toward a more equal world.”
TIME writer Sean Gregory highlights Gauff’s social activism in particular to spotlight her, saying that began in 2020 when she famously took the podium in her hometown of Delray Beach, Fla. at a peaceful protest of police brutality.
“It was to the point where I was crying about it, because I felt like I had to say something,” Gauff says in the article, which also makes note of the fact that activism is in her blood. Her maternal grandmother, Yvonee Lee Odom, was the first Black student at a Delray Beach high school in 1961.
Coco Gauff’s activism is, in part, what landed her with selection to the list, and she’s been speaking up again this week at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships. The reigning US Open champion praised New York Liberty guard Sabrina Ionescu, who went head-to-head with Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry in a first-of-its-kind mixed-gender 3-point shooting contest as a part of the NBA’s All-Star Weekend festivities; though
Coco Gauff hailed Ionescu’s “incredible” effort, which say her shoot from NBA 3-point range rather than the closer WNBA regulation distance, while also saying she would love to see similar mixed-gender skills competitions in tennis. She cited a serving contest between Serena Williams and Nick Kyrgios as one in particular, and also said Ons Jabeur and Carlos Alcaraz could go head-to-head in drop-shot prowess.
“I just hope they [the NBA] continue to do this. It just humbles a lot of men in the world,” Gauff said. “I really like that. Especially basketball, that type of competition, it’s something where physicality doesn’t always matter. I think that’s what makes it cool.”
