UI Athletics news release
IOWA CITY, Iowa – University of Iowa Women’s Wrestling head coach Clarissa Chun has been named USA Today’s Women of the Year Honoree for the state of Iowa on Thursday.
This award is presented annually to 12 national honorees and one honoree per state.
This year’s honorees are described as “our neighbors and role models. They use their voices for others, many overcoming immense challenges, to make change happen. Simply put, they make us want to do better.”
Chun was named the first head coach of the women’s wrestling program in 2021. The two-time Olympian has led the team to a National Duals title in their inaugural season and has 15 student-athletes qualified for the NCWWC National Championships next weekend in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.
The Hawaii native is a National Wrestling Hall of Fame Distinguished member and a 2018 Hawaii Sports Hall of Fame inductee.
Previous honorees in the state of Iowa include Iowa City native, Daisa Taylor and Gina Zastrow-Hayes. Previous collegiate head coach recipients have been Patty Gasso of Oklahoma softball, Dawn Staley of South Carolina women’s basketball and Tara VanDerveer of Stanford women’s basketball.
For the full list of the 2024 honorees you can visit www.usatoday.com/women-of-the-