Under Duke head coach Kara Lawson’s guidance, the U.S. women’s national team won the gold medal in the FIBA AmeriCup tournament. Lawson’s team remained unbeaten throughout the tournament, including a statement win against Brazil in the finals.
Her latest triumph at the 2025 FIBA Women’s AmeriCup cements her legacy as one of the most decorated figures in the sport. After a dominant gold-medal finish in Chile, Lawson added her 13th career gold medal to an already glittering résumé.
On Tuesday, Lawson posted a photo with the trophy and the gold medal hanging around her neck, while flexing the other times she has won a gold medal on the international stage.
“Count ‘em up! 13 Gold Medals!” she wrote.
Count ‘em up! 13 Gold Medals!
🥇’25 AmeriCup
🥇’24 Olympics
🥇’22 World Cup
🥇’21 Olympics
🥇’19 Pan Ams (M)
🥇’19 Pan Ams (W)
🥇’19 World Cup (M)
🥇’19 World Cup (W)
🥇’18 Youth Olympics
🥇’17 World Cup
🥇’08 Olympics
🥇’07 AmeriCup
🥇’01 WUG pic.twitter.com/OZQajrf028— Kara Lawson (@karalawson20) July 8, 2025
Kara Lawson’s Heartfelt Tribute After AmeriCup Victory
After leading Team USA to a 92-84 victory against Brazil, Kara Lawson shared a heartfelt tribute on X (formerly Twitter), writing:
“To the 12: It has been an honor to be your Coach. To watch you grow and compete was something I will carry with me. I am so excited for you and your futures. You are the 2025 AmeriCup Champions! We will always share a powerful memory of sacrifice, toughness and belief.”
To the 12:
It has been an honor to be your Coach. To watch you grow and compete was something I will carry with me. I am so excited for you and your futures. You are the 2025 AmeriCup Champions! We will always share a powerful memory of sacrifice, toughness and belief.
— Kara Lawson (@karalawson20) July 7, 2025
Before Kara Lawson was a coach, she was a standout hooper, who represented USA in multiple international tournaments. Lawson played under legendary coach Pat Summitt at Tennessee.
As a player, Lawson won gold at the 2001 World University Games and the 2007 AmeriCup. Moreover, in the 2008 Beijing Olympics, she starred in the gold medal game, going 5-for-5 from the field.
In Tokyo 2020, Lawson took the reins of the U.S. women’s basketball’s debut 3×3 team and led them to the gold medal. In the process, she became one of only three women in Olympic history to win gold as both a player and a coach.
Meanwhile, Lawson’s professional career is marked by the 2005 WNBA championship and a 2007 All-Star selection. Her coaching started with the Boston Celtics as a graduate assistant before taking over the head coach role of Duke in 2020.
Since then, she has led the program to a 97-41 record, marked by three NCAA Tournament appearances, with last season’s Elite Eight finish being the best of them.
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