Unexpected Curves

After years of chasing the elusive sub-two-minute 800m, Skylyn Webb finally did it- but not without a long stretch of feeling stuck in the middle.

In this episode, I talk with Skylyn about the slow, often invisible middle parts of pursuing a goal, the burnout that nearly pushed her out of the sport, and how letting go became the key to unlocking her breakthrough.

We also get into her next chapter with Meridia, the new athlete-led pro team she's joined, her passion for mental health, the brave act of marriage, and how her coach Julie Benson has been a game changer in her journey.

With record-breaking attendance, viewership, and cultural buzz, the WNBA is no longer just ‘having a moment’, it’s shaping the future of sports.

In light of the league’s continued rise, I'm re-airing this conversation with filmmaker Dawn Porter about her documentary The Power of the Dream, which captures the WNBA’s pivotal 2020 season.

The film intimately explores how the league’s players used their platform to demand justice, and how that season became a turning point in sports activism. We get into her start in filmmaking, why she chose to tell the story of the WNBA, and what makes female-identifying athletes especially primed to make a difference.

Happy Father’s Day weekend! We’re re-airing a favorite from Season 1, Episode 2 with my dad.

This conversation is all about fatherhood, sport, and how the people closest to us can shift the way we see ourselves. We talk about building real-life support for girls beyond hashtags, and the power of relationships that grow through movement.

If you missed it the first time around take a listen!

This weekend, thousands of women will take to the streets of Los Angeles for the Nike After Dark Tour LA.

In this episode, we catch up with Ayahna Wilbon, founder of Frnds Table and a first-time half-marathoner. Her journey to the starting line is personal, but it also mirrors a broader shift happening across the country. More women are moving on their own terms and redefining what wellness and fitness look like in 2025.

Run clubs, once niche and often male-dominated, have evolved into powerful spaces of connection, empowerment,

Nia is many things. An Ivy League graduate, U.S. champion, Olympian, and singer-songwriter. In this episode, we dive into the unique intersection of songwriting and sport. Nia shares how music has shaped her mindset as an athlete, and how she balances the grind of elite competition with the vulnerability of creative expression. We also get into what it means to chase multiple dreams without compromise.

Hint: You don’t have to stay in your lane.

The NCAA sports machine is built to celebrate the All-American dream. But sometimes, that narrative sidelines the very international athletes who help keep it running. In this episode, Olympian Síofra Cléirigh Büttner shares the quiet determination that carried her from Ireland to the elite ranks of collegiate running at Villanova University.

Vanessa Fraser isn’t just a fast runner, she’s also a savvy strategist who’s taken control of her own career. From going pro without an agent to juggling corporate work between training blocks, Vanessa shares what it means to be both a competitor, and a career architect.

Teenage girls are often the creators of the most influential slang, and cultural trends, yet in sports, their voices are mostly absent from the dominant narrative. In this episode i'm joined by author, and cultural critic Soraya Chemaly to explore how the language we use in and around sports reflects deeper systems of power.

We unpack how phrases like “you throw like a girl” or “she’s too emotional” don’t just describe performance, they shape it. From sports commentary to playground taunts, we ask: What happens when the default language of sport centers maleness? And what could the game sound like if we made space for the linguistic innovation and authorship of girls?

With more money flowing into athletics than ever before, today’s athletes are navigating a space where impact and influence are key to success, but the support to manage it doesn’t always keep up. In today’s episode, I’m joined by Briana Nelson, co-founder of B3 Consulting & Management Agency, to dive into how she’s reimagining what it means to give back in sports.

38 episodes in, it’s time to rewind. Today’s bonus episode is about the spark that started Unexpected Curves, how it’s evolved, and where it's going.