Global Sport Matters

As spring turned into summer, college sports programs across the country were faced with tough decisions. Should they return to fall sports? The answer for one college was simple. Cancel. Joining to discuss why Morehouse won’t be playing this fall is its president, David Thomas.

Patrick Mahomes II, drafted into the NFL in 2017, won a Super Bowl in 2019, just scored what’s been called the largest contract in history, signing a $503 million dollar deal that spans the next decade. With the precedent set, who will be the next in sports to follow? We talk with FIFA sports agent, Maggie Ntim, about the potential ripple effect from the deal and navigating the sports world as a woman of color.

The Weight of Gold is an HBO Sports documentary exploring the mental health challenges that Olympic athletes often face. The film comes during a time when the COVID-19 pandemic has postponed the 2020 Tokyo Games — the first such postponement in Olympic history — and greatly exacerbated mental health issues. Joining us to discuss the film is its director, Brett Rapkin.

Although the Supreme Court’s recent decision to retain DACA was met with a sigh of relief for Argeo Cruz, a DREAMer, while his running time qualified him to compete in the US Olympic Trials, he still lacks one requirement that would allow him to represent the place he's called home most of his life.

Earlier this month the sports world lost a legend. Brad Pye, Jr., was a man of many “firsts” who led a distinguished career as a sports journalist and broadcaster. We dedicate this episode to his life by talking with our very own Kenneth Shropshire, Bill Rhoden, and Marques Johnson, who Brad wrote about early in his basketball career.

Hollywood is a microcosm of the industry where stories about women are less common, especially in sport. The Women’s Sports Film Festival is working to change all of that. Started just a few years ago as a way to bring female athlete stories to life, the documentary film festival is on a mission to show the complexities of women’s lives, the struggles and failures, the successes, and the motivations that make them heroines. Joining to discuss the WSFF is Susan Sullivan, founder, whose mission is to curate and amplify stories of female athletes.

*A warning that this episode does contain content that references historic recounts of violence against Native people, and specifically a historic account of sexual violence against Native women.

The Washington NFL Team is finally changing its racist name. The battle has been fought in and out of court for decades, and this past weekend the announcement was made that it would retire the name and logo for good. We recently sat down with Amanda Blackhorse on The Huddle prior to the announcement and welcome her back to the show along with Mojave American Poet Natalie Diaz, Olympic Gold Medalist Billy Mills, and Arizona State University Professor of Indigenous education and justice, Bryan Brayboy.

Professional sports are grappling with decisions about the number of games and where the safest place to play is. But what about the player’s physical abilities to return to sport after COVID-19 put their routines on pause? Dr. NiCole Keith, President of the American College of Sports Medicine discusses the implications of a return to sport and her research focused on improving health equity. And the NBA says they want to be realistic about the possibility that the season may not fully happen. We’re talking with epidemiologist, Zachary Binney, about what sports are up against and whether they can pull off the return that sports fans have been promised.

The 2019 Racial and Gender Report Card is out. How did the major leagues and college sport do? Joining us to discuss the report is Richard Lapchick from the Institute for Diversity and Ethics in Sport from the University of Central Florida. And we’ve seen big companies and leagues pledging millions of dollars to fight systemic racism, but where should all that money go? Joining us is ‘Kat’ Rosqueta, founding executive director of the Center for High Impact Philanthropy.

As statues depicting confederate heroes and slave owners are being torn down, there is also a renewed call to remove racist names and logos from sport, and support is growing. We talk with Amanda Blackhorse, about the revived debate over racism in sport. And joining us for our reporters' roundtable: Bill Rhoden with ESPN’s The Undefeated and Eric Deggans, NPR TV Critic, who get down to the issue of the role of sports media today.