NEW YORK (AP) — Jonquel Jones, Breanna Stewart, Sabrina Ionescu and their New York teammates were showered with confetti as the Liberty celebrated winning the WNBA title in the Canyon of Heroes in downtown Manhattan.
New York Sen. Chuck Schumer, Gov. Kathy Hochul and New York City Mayor Eric Adams joined the thousands who lined the streets on Thursday.
The Liberty won the franchise's first championship, beating the Minnesota Lynx in overtime in a decisive Game 5 of the WNBA Finals on Sunday at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn. Some veteran Liberty players from the early teams, including Teresa Weatherspoon, Vickie Johnson and Kym Hampton, attended the parade.
The route was full of fans of all ages, with many of the kids wearing jerseys of their favorite players. Jones carried her Finals MVP trophy atop her float, while Stewart and Ionescu went into the crowd, giving high-fives and taking selfies with fans.
“This is awesome. I’ve been a Liberty fan since they first started playing” said Sarah Davis of the WNBA’s start in 1997. “It’s so cool that we won and we could celebrate with a parade.”
There have been over 200 ticker-tape and confetti parades in New York. The most recent to honor a women's sports team came in 2019 when the U.S. soccer team won the World Cup. Two years later, there was a parade to honor essential workers and first responders for their service during the coronavirus pandemic.
Not all New York sports champions have gotten the honor of a parade. The New York City FC won their first Major League Soccer championship in 2021, but only received a celebration at City Hall. Last year, NY/NJ Gotham FC won the championship of the NWSL woman’s pro soccer league, but also didn’t get a parade.
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