Yip Pin Xiu_Flamebearers

Yip Pin Xiu (Singapore): Swimming & Solidarity

Yip Pin Xiu is a “born and bred city girl’, having grown up in Singapore with her close-knit family flying kites, playing in the sand pool, and at five, getting in the with her brothers. Swimming started as a family activity. Fast forward to 2008, and Pin Xiu became Singapore’s

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noelle lambert flamebearers

Noelle Lambert (USA): From Tragedy to Triumph on the Track

Noelle Lambert played in the dirt and on the field with her older brothers, watching the Pats, Bruins, Celtics, and Red Sox. She was always active, keeping up with the boys. Flash forward to college at UMass Lowell where Noelle is playing Division 1 lacrosse, and she’s in an accident

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nicky nieves-flamebearers-followup

Nicky Nieves: Sneak Peek

The last time we heard from USA Sitting Volleyball star, Nicky Nieves, she was gearing up for the Tokyo Paralympics, hot after winning gold in Rio. We focused on her identity as an Afro Latina and Black Lives Matter (BLM). I asked her if we have made any progress since

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Masomah Alizada Flamebearer

Masomah Alizada (IOC Refugee Team): Cycling for Hope

Masomah Alizada is the first female Olympic cyclist from Afghanistan, and getting to the Olympics hasn’t just been a battle against her own skills and competitors but also against the Taliban. In this episode, Masomah discusses her departure from Afghanistan, journey to Tokyo as part of the International Olympic Committee

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Masomah Alizada__Flamebearer teaser

Sneak Peek: Masomah Alizada

Masomah is the first woman Olympic cyclist from Afghanistan. Her fight to compete and to the podium hasn’t just been against her own records and competitors, but with the Taliban. Tune in next Wednesday for Masomah’s full episode, in which we discuss her rise to Tokyo as part of the Olympic

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Victoria Stambaugh

Victoria Stambaugh (Puerto Rico): Finding Faith & Taekwondo

Victoria considers herself a proud “Puerto Rican American.” Having grown up in the Houston, Texas area, she “was considered a Latina,” but then when she went to Puerto Rico, she “was seen as American.” According to Victoria, for some, her personal identity falls in a bit of a “gray area.”

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Ritah Asiimwe (Uganda): Purpose & Para Badminton

Ritah Asiimwe (Uganda): Purpose & Para Badminton

Ritah lost her hand when machete and hammer-wielding thieves broke into her Grandma’s house in 2005. Today, Ritah is the African Para Badminton Champion and was one of only four Ugandan Paralympians who participated in the Tokyo Paralympics.  Today she opens up about losing her hand, and how she’s moved

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Sneak Peak - Ritah Asiimwe (Uganda): Purpose & Para Badminton

Sneak Peek: Ritah Asiimwe

Sneak peek of our upcoming episode with Ugandan Para Badminton Champ, Ritah Asiimwe. Ritah was one of 4 Ugandan Paralympians who participated in the Tokyo Paralympics. In her episode, she shares about defending her family against thieves who broke into her grandma’s home, losing her arm to these thieves who

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Sneak Peek: Kenza Sossé Book Launch

Sneak Peek: Kenza Sossé

Sneak peek of our upcoming episode with 23 year old Qatari track and field star, Kenza Sossé. Kenza shares about her experience qualifying for the Games and then testing positive for COVID-19 the week of her departure for Tokyo…In Kenza’s full episode, she discusses her bounce back after missing the

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Athlete Follow Up: Manasi Joshi (India): Looking Ahead to Paris

Manasi Joshi is India’s current Para-badminton World Champion and BBC India’s Sportswoman of the year. One day on her way to work, a truck ran into Manasi; hours dragged on before she received treatment, and her leg eventually needed to be amputated. In this episode, Manasi talks about losing her

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Sneek Peak: Liu Jiayu

We heard from quite a few of you that you liked our sneek peaks of upcoming episodes, so given our bi-weekly publishing schedule, we’ll drop trailers for who is next in the off weeks. Next week we spotlight Chinese snowboarding phenom, Liu Jiayu. Here’s just a bit of what you

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Holiday Break & Sneak Peek of Alejandra Aybar

Holiday Break & Sneak Peek of Alejandra Aybar

We want to honor Alejandra’s story to the best of our abilities, so because of the holidays and New Year, we will publish her episode next Wednesday, 1/4. That said, here’s a bit of what you can expect. Tune in next week for her full story!

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Dr. Seun Adigun (Nigeria)

Dr. Seun Adigun (Nigeria): Fighting for African Representation

Dr. Seun Adigun is the first African to compete in both the Summer and Winter Olympics. She spearheaded the first female bobsled team from her country, and track and field runner but that’s not all, she’s also a biomechanist, chiropractor and founder. According to Dr. Adigun, “You have to pave

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Thanksgiving Break & Athlete Follow Up with Deja Young

Thanksgiving Break & Athlete Follow Up with Deja Young

We want to honor Deja’s story to the best of our abilities, so because this week is Thanksgiving in the United States, we will publish her episode next Wednesday, 11/30. That said, here’s a bit of what you can expect. Tune in next week for her full story!

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Alexa Moreno (MEX)

Alexa Moreno (MEX): Vaulting Over the Critics

Vaulting Over The Critics Alexa is a 2x Olympian (Tokyo and Rio) and the first Mexican woman to win a World Championship Medal. She’s one of the 100 most powerful women in Mexico (via Forbes Magazine), yet according to her manager, Frida Martinez, “She doesn’t know she’s a role model.

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Sue Bird (USA)

Sue Bird (USA): Bigger Than Basketball

Sue Bird is one of the most iconic athletes in the world: she’s been a professional athlete for 20 years, won 5 gold Olympic medals (2004, 2008, 2012, 2016, 2020) and has become one of the most outspoken advocates for social change. Further, between her Olympic and FIBA World Cup

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Season 3 Trailer: Keeping the Fire Burning

Season 3 Trailer: Keeping the Fire Burning

Flame Bearers: Keeping the Fire Burning spotlights women Olympians and Paralympians who sought to compete in the Tokyo Summer or Beijing Winter Olympics and Paralympics. In this season, we discuss what happens AFTER the Games, when the fans and cameras go home. We’re going beyond the glamour to see how

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Simidele Adeagbo (Nigeria): The Original Sleigh Queen

Simidele Adeagbo (Nigeria): The Original Sleigh Queen

Simidele (Simi) was the first African and black woman to compete in Skeleton at the Olympics, and more recently, the first African to take home gold at an international bobsled competition: “We don’t have the facilities [in Nigeria], and we don’t have the equipment, so to know that I was

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Ukrainian Athletes: What the World Needs to Hear

Ukrainian Athletes: What the World Needs to Hear

In light of Russian war on Ukraine, this special edition episode is different than our normal episodes. In an effort to elevate Ukranian voices and the connection between sports and politics, we speak with three elite Ukrainian athletes: Valentina Molchanets (Professional Triathlete and European Champion, Aquathlon, U23), Vita Oleksiuk (Paralympian,

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Kendall Gretsch (USA)

Kendall Gretsch (USA): 2 Games in 2 Sports Within 6 Months

3x Paralympic Gold Medalist, Kendall Gretsch is one of the only athletes who competed in Tokyo this past summer who is also competing in Beijing. Less than 6 months ago Kendall won gold in Paratriathlon, and she’s now one of the Para Nordic favorites in Beijing. In this episode we

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Valentina Margaglio (Italy)

Valentina Margaglio (Italy): the Skeleton Lioness

Valentina or ‘The Lioness’ grew up in Italy as a ‘very competitive child’ with her three sisters and one brother. She describes her heritage as “the perfect mix” of cultures, crediting each of her parents and their respective origins with various parts of who she is today (her Dad is

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Mariama Jamanka (Germany)

Mariama Jamanka (Germany): the Underdog Gold Medal Bobsled Queen

Reigning Olympic gold medalist, Mariama Jamanka never thought the words ‘Olympic Champion’ would apply to her, as a relative newcomer to bobsledding and as a member of the former 2nd German sled. In PyeongChang, Mariama and brakewoman, Lisa Buckwitz shattered all expectations, shocking the world by winning gold. In this

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Bradie Tennell (USA)

Bradie Tennell (USA): Figure Skating & Making the Tough Calls

US Olympic bronze medalist and 2X National Champion figure skater, Bradie Tennell has already made a career out of breaking records…and unfortunately her feet. As of Dec. 31 2021, (just after this interview was recorded), Bradie made the tough decision to withdraw from figure skating Nationals due to her chronic

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Caster Semenya (South Africa)

Caster Semenya (South Africa): Who Decides Who’s Female and Why?

It’s been a while since the Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics, but we wanted to amplify and celebrate a voice the world missed in Japan. 2x Olympic gold medalist and 3x World Champion runner, Caster Semenya was barred from competing in her events because of her higher than ‘normal’ testosterone levels.

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Jessica Long (USA)

Jessica Long (USA): Perfection, Faith & Paraswimming

Jessica Long is one of the most successful athletes in Paralympic Games‘ history, holding 23 medals with 13 of them being gold. As she heads into her fifth Paralympics, Jessica shares that while her gold medals are “super cool”, for her, it’s “really about the journey.” In this episode, this

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