Amid the flurry of rumors and speculative social media posts, Indiana Fever guard Caitlin Clark is at the heart of a fabricated story suggesting she has joined Team Canada following her exclusion from the Team USA roster for the upcoming Paris Olympics in July.
The buzz began after Clark, the all-time leading scorer in the National College Athletics Association (NCAA), was conspicuously absent from the USA women’s basketball team roster, which was announced on June 11. One particularly viral Facebook post featured an image of Clark in a Canadian national team jersey, proclaiming: “BREAKING: Caitlin Clark Sparks Media Storm with Statement on Joining Canadian Team for 2024 Paris Olympics After US Team Snub.”
However, a thorough fact-check reveals no such announcement exists on the official websites of either Team Canada or Team USA. Additionally, there is no corresponding statement on Clark’s social media accounts. In fact, a spokesperson for the Canadian basketball team confirmed to Reuters that the claim is entirely false.
Further investigation into the image in question shows it to be doctored. The picture of Clark wearing the Canadian jersey is actually an altered version of an original photo of Canadian player Bridget Carleton, as confirmed through a side-by-side comparison.
In response to being left off the U.S. team, Clark expressed her thoughts to reporters on June 9: “Honestly, no disappointment – it just gives me something to work for. It’s a dream, you know – hopefully one day I can be there. I think it’s just a little more motivation,” she said. “Hopefully when four years comes back around, I can be there.”
A spokesperson for Clark has not yet responded to requests for further comments.
VERDICT: The claim that Caitlin Clark has joined Team Canada ahead of the Paris Olympics is unequivocally false. No official statements or credible reports support this claim, and the image circulating online has been proven to be manipulated.