Sportshour

New Orleans is known as the party capital of the South, synonymous with warm welcomes, Mardi Gras, and all that Jazz. But in August 2005 that all changed, now when people think of New Orleans, they think of Hurricane Katrina. The Super Dome, where the Super Bowl will be played, was the city’s “shelter of last resort” in 2005. So, if you did not have the means of escaping, or had nowhere to go, you could find sanctuary at the Super Dome. What happened next at the Super Dome would define the misery, suffering and devastation the hurricane would cause. What happened there just over a year later symbolised the city’s resolution, recovery, and rebirth. At the very heart of it would be Doug and Denise Thornton. Doug was, and still is, the manager of the Super Dome, through their eyes we will learn what it was like to be in the Super Dome when Katrina hit and how it was rebuilt. Denise created the Beacon of Hope Foundation and helped reinvigorate and regenerate neighborhoods many thought lost to the flooding.As a ph

Not by the Playbook is celebrating the start of the Women’s Rugby World Cup by hearing from two people who know what it’s like to compete on the global stage and the impact and legacy it can have.Legacy is often talked about when it comes to tournaments like this and what impact the global exposure can have on future generations. This has been at the forefront of former French international Lénaïg Corson’s mind ever since she retired as a player. The World Cup bronze medallist from 2017 is now developing the next generation of players through the “Rugby Girl Academy” she founded, and she tells Katie Smith how carrying the Olympic torch last year was symbolic in handing over the baton once her playing career had ended.One player who is hoping for success this year is England's Ellie Kildunne who says this tournament is “going to change rugby”. Last year’s World Rugby's Women's 15s Player of the Year wants to make sure she captures as many moments as she can. She explains why her camera was one of her must have

Could there be a bigger contrast? As the richest soccer league in the world, the English Premier League, gets it new season underway we are on the streets of Oslo meeting the players of the Homeless World Cup and how they are using soccer to turn their lives around. David Duke is the chief executive and founder of Street Soccer Scotland, the charity which transforms lives through football. Fourteen years ago, he was sleeping rough and living in hostels when he saw an advertisement for Homeless World Cup. He was selected to represent his country and three years later, in 2007, he managed the Scottish team who lifted the trophy. Have you, or your child got what it takes to be a Premier League footballer? The fact is that most players are recruited by the age or 8. So how can you spot who is going to make it to the top at such a young age? Chris Robinson knows, he spent twelve year as part of the recruitment team at Chelsea’s academy. He tells us what it's like trying to spot talent, the massive names he helped

In 2001 Wojtek Czyz had just signed his first professional contract with the German football side Fortuna Köln. His career was set for take-off but in his very first season he suffered an injury which ultimately resulted in the amputation of his left leg. Determined to stay active Wojtek trained hard and became one of the leading lights of the Paralympic movement. He won seven track and field medals, including three golds at the Athens games of 2004. When his athletics career came to an end, the question like for so many was what next ? For Wojtek that was settling sail on a boat with cargo of prosthetic legs handing them out to anyone in need. His destination was New Zealand, where he was struck by the lack of support for para sport. So, by the time of the Paris Games in 2024 Wojtek had qualified to represent his new country in Badminton. Why? Well, to prove a point and change people's views on disability rights! Cheering from the stands was his good friend and former Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp no less.

We meet the ultra-marathon runner with a love of breaking records and taboos. As side from breaking the two treadmill World Record, Sophie Power has completed some of the toughest, longest and energy sapping races. It was whilst doing one of the world's most famous, Ultra-Trail du Mont-Blanc that a picture of her breastfeeding her second child went viral. It raised all sorts of questions about the lack of equity between male and female competitors and forced the sport to rethink its attitude to womenLife in the mountains is both a dazzling display of nature with a twist of constant danger. Free ride skier Kim Vinet spent many years competing and then more than a decade guiding others on and around the pristine and untouched snow of British Columbia. She explains the dramatic views and exhilaration of skiing these untouched paths, and the difficulty of loss all too often experienced in mountain communities. Kim is also part of the EcoAthletes collective, a non-profit that inspires and coaches athletes to lead

Not by the Playbook’s Katie Smith is in Switzerland venue of the 2025 Women’s European Championship final.Our first guest couldn't be further from Switzerland if she tried, and sadly the national side she represented is a long way from being able to play competitive matches. Born in Afghanistan, Mursal Sadat played football for her country. Then in August 2021 the Taliban returned and Mursal had to make a chaotic and emotional escape. She now lives in Australia where she tells us about how much she owes to the football family, how she misses her mum, dad and brothers immensely and how she hopes once again to represent Afghanistan on the highest level.Switzerland has been a great host nation. Enthusiastic crowds, city centre's bedecked in the colours of those competing and, of course, it’s being watched by millions of people all over the world. It's all a far cry from the very first European competition for women's football. In 1984, 16 teams battled it out across Europe, before the final was between Sweden a

LA is the spiritual home of skateboarding. But it has come a long way from its past as “counterculture” and is now part of the Olympic games which return to Los Angeles in 2028. When Skateboard Hall of Fame inductee, Jaime Reyes started out in the 1980’ she was all alone in a man’s world. Her rise to the top of the sport was as much about her own personal success as it was about getting other girls to see what is possible.When we play a board game, we can get 5 or 6 friends around the board at the most but imagine playing your favourite game with 20,000 others. You need somewhere pretty big for that. So how about the iconic Madison Square Garden in New York? Brennan Lee Mulligan did just that with his version of the game Dungeons and Dragons. Simon Parker heads to Hawaii, the birthplace of surfing, to find out how the sport developed into an Olympic discipline. And we hear from Garrett McNamara of the who broke the world record for the biggest wave ever surfed officially judged to be 78ft.And how do you go ab

Roger Taylor was the British tennis number one who fell out with his contemporaries while coming tantalisingly close to winning Wimbledon. He found himself engulfed in controversy through his defiance of the 1973 Wimbledon boycott, which almost tore his world apart. He tells us about his near Wimbledon misses and how he was a leading contender to replace Sean Connery as James Bond. Fifty years ago Arthur Ashe pulled off an amazing feat, upsetting the odds and becoming the first black man to win the Wimbledon Men's final when he beat fellow American Jimmy Connors - but it was not something he wanted to define his life. His fight to break down barriers around racial discrimination was closer to his heart - and apartheid South Africa became one of his battle grounds. Though his agent Donald Dell and tennis writer Richard Evans we tell the story of Ashe’s controversial visit to South Africa in 1973 and how a tennis academy in his name now thrives in Soweto. We meet Rufus the hawk who serves as Wimbledon's "chief

Our guest this week prove 'W' stands for winners. We hear from Sir Bradley Wiggins, Lori Walton, Jim and Jeff Whitley and Sir Clyde Walcott.As the Tour de France begins we hear from Sir Bradley Wiggins, one of THE stars of the 2012 Olympics. Just a couple of weeks after becoming the first British rider to win the Tour de France, the home favourite won gold on the streets of London to claim his 5th Olympic title and 8th medal in total. Wiggins was a poster boy for cycling, with his popularity transcending the sport. The hip icon of Cool Britannia was knighted in 2013 as Great Britain basked in the glow of a successful London games. So news of his struggles since retirement came as a shock. As if it reminded us that he was after all human. Battles with the bottle caused him to lose his bearings, his business and his wife. What a relief then when Joel Hammer met him to see a fit, healthy and once again Lycra clad Wiggins.WALCOTT: Exactly 75 years ago Sir Clyde Walcott and his teammates won a Test Match on Englis

Climber Janja Garnbret is one of the best examples of how easy becoming an Olympic champion can look. In both Tokyo and Paris she seemingly effortlessly ascended her way to gold. They sit alongside her eight World Championships. At 26 she is still young enough to continue to dominate for some time. From her home Slovenia, where she is a mega star, she joined Katie Smith to talk about just how much effort goes into making the very difficult look like a walk in the park, what it felt like to become a two-time Olympic champion and body image.Some say silver is "first looser" and there is no doubt a bitter sweet feel to coming second, even if you are considered one of Africa's greatest Olympic sprinter. Sadly for him there no better person to speak about what it feel like to land a silver, he won four Olympic silvers. We hear from for Namibia's Frankie Fredricks on how it felt to never make it to gold.We meet the Bronze who is a born winner. This bronze is about to set off to defend her gold medal winning perform

Not by the Playbook comes from The Queen’s Club in London where Katie Smith is unboxing her pack of cards.British para standing tennis player Nicky Maxwell has always had a sporting ace up his sleeve, including now as President of the International Para Standing Tennis Association, but his life in sport hasn’t been without its challenges. The former Harvard University sprinter shares what life was like as a para athlete in the US collegiate system and his Paralympic ambitions for para standing tennis.The US queen of Mexico’s rodeo, Paola Pimienta tells us all about the Mexican tradition of charrería and its all-female synchronised team equestrian competition, escaramuza. It’s a traditional sport which can be adrenaline-fuelled, so what’s it like to take part and how has it helped Pimienta connect with her Mexican heritage?After former England cricketer David “Syd” Lawrence was diagnosed with Motor Neurone Disease last year, it led to a race against time to tell his story in an autobiography. It’s a life which

Sir Roger Bannister is most famous for being the first man to ever run a sub 4 minute mile. He once said "The man who can drive himself further once the effort gets painful is the man who will win". This week, guests who have displayed the drive needed to overcome the most serious challenges life can throw at you. The word "drive" can have many different meanings. From maneuvering a car, to pushing a cause and making positive change... Carol Glenn does all three! A Motorsport fanatic, she has successfully done many roles within the sport. She's been a race marshall, secretary of the meeting, championship co-ordinator and a clerk of the course. All roles dedicated to ensuring event runs smoothly and safely. To hold those positions is rare for a woman in a male dominated sport... even rarer as a woman of colour! In fact she was the first black woman to become a licensed race official in the UK. Her latest endeavour might just be her boldest yet as she sets about changing the face of the sport to ensure those w

Basketball pioneer Paoline Ekambi's changed the perceptions of women's basketball in the 1980's when she played in the USA. She introduced a style of play off and on the court that broke new ground. In turn she also aided the path for French stars likes Tony Parker and Victor Wembanyama to make it in the NBA. In fact Paoline knows Victor very well indeed! But sporting success and the glory it brings can often mask the pain of an athletes life away from the track, field or court. After her career ended Paoline has worked tirelessly as an advocate for those who have survived child sexual abuse. WARNING: Paoline's story is deeply upsetting, a story of the most awful betrayal of trust and how sport was her route to what she calls "freedom" We're not too far away from the first anniversary of the Paris Olympic's. In what was a return to normality for the Games following the sterile and spectator free games in Tokyo three years before. The crowds were so enthusiastic, none more so than in the coastal city of Marsei

Not by the Playbook’s Mani Djazmi speaks to the World’s Strongest Man after South Africa’s Rayno Nel became the first champion from outside of Europe or North America. Nel is a former rugby player who has a day job as an engineer, so what does it take to become the world’s strongest man and how has his life changed?Mauritius isn’t known for producing world class cyclists, but Kimberley (Le Court) Pienaar is certainly going a long way to change that view. The three-time Mauritius national road race champion won the prestigious Liège-Bastogne-Liège, just 18 months after emailing World Tour teams to give her a chance. Pienaar speaks ahead of competing at the Tour of Britain for the first time in 10 years when things looked very different for the Mauritian. Boxing pundit Steve Bunce has been ringside for many of the world’s greatest fights and he shares what makes a champion from what he’s seen and from the many champions he’s spoken to. Plus, he looks back on some of his most memorable boxing memories.This week’

Not by the Playbook’s Katie Smith is scouring the world’s surface for extraordinary stories – from the depths of the ocean to an extreme triathlon to the top of the world.Italian freediver Alessia Zecchini speaks from the Philippines where she has set her 40th world record, so what is it like descending down to depths of over 100 metres below the surface without oxygen? Alessia continues to dive in memory of her partner, Stephen Keenan who was killed diving in 2017. Their story is the subject of the Netflix film The Deepest Breath.Mitch Hutchcraft reflects on his gruelling seven month triathlon – from England to the top of Everest. To get there he swam, cycled, ran and trekked for over 13,000 kilometres across 20 different countries, taking 240 days to complete. Strong currents, near fatal accidents and stray dogs were just some of the challenges he encountered, but why did he do it?Runner Mirna Valerio swapped the classroom as a Spanish teacher for the rough and rugged terrain of the outdoors and the rough w

Basketball, the Cold War, and rock band The Grateful Dead collide in this incredible true story. Presented by the late NBA star Bill Walton. Episodes weekly from 19 May.What do basketball, rock music, and tie-dye t-shirts have in common? And what about Mickey Hart, Sarunas Marciulionis, Arvydas Sabonis, and the US Dream Team? Well, they are all subject of the brand new season of Amazing Sport Stories: Bill Walton’s The Grateful Team.It’s Moscow, 1989, and Lithuanian basketball star Sarunas Marciulionis is walking nervously through the airport. If all goes to plan, a new life awaits playing basketball for the NBA in the US. But first, he must cross the Iron Curtain. Sarunas doesn’t yet know the incredible journey he is about to go on. One which will involve political upheaval, the Olympic games, the US rock band The Grateful Dead - and, of course, tie-dye. The late NBA star and sports commentator Bill Walton presents this extraordinary true story. Bill passed away in 2024, not long after recording the series,

On FA Cup finals weekend, Not by the Playbook’s Katie Smith looks at the “magic of the cup”. Joe Parkinson goes back 30 years to when he won the 1995 FA Cup with Everton. He reveals why he faced a challenge to get a Manchester United player’s shirt, and he shares his memories of Goodison Park ahead of the final men’s game to be played there. Cup engraver Colin Mabey takes us behind-the-scenes of the intricate detail required to get sports trophies ready for the winners - and how it led to him being part of a film directed by Madonna. There’s cups of a different variety too. Canadian rower Jenny Casson opens up about her self-reflection since competing at the 2024 Olympic Games, but how an exciting new venture has given her a lift. She’s a co-founder of Daylilie who create bras for “athletic silhouettes”. Completing a stacked show is Kit Fox who shares how his father helped popularise sport stacking around the world. How did the craze of stacking cups become a global sport with its own world championsh

The ancient game of chess is one steeped in tradition, with a history dating back centuries. The classical form of chess is still prominent on the global stage, but streaming and online platforms have seen the game now increasingly being played online – so much so that it’s set to make its debut at the Esports World Cup later this year.Not by the Playbook’s Katie Smith finds out more about the stories behind this historic board game – from a world record holder to the designer of one of the world’s most valuable and lavish chess sets.Nigeria's Tunde Onakoya shares his story from learning to play in a barber shop to setting the world record for the longest chess match last month. He played against Shawn Martinez for 64 hours in New York’s Times Square and he’s wanting to help children in Africa with a similar story to his.Jules Gambit was a junior chess champion in her youth but found that she was struggling to make friends, so made the switch to ballet. She’s now back involved in chess and is now a rising sta

In 1991 the Chancellor family welcomed their new daughter into the world. they named her Emily. A bright and active girl she grew up watching Rugby union, but it wasn't a sport easily accessible to women. The game however has grown and it's set to get bigger with the Women's World Cup coming to the UK in September. And there's a good chance Emily will be there representing Australia. Chance. It's what you need in sport, in life in general! Chance. It's right there in her name Emily CHANCEllor... and so she has adopted a mantra, a tag line that she lives by... "Life of Chance" “What's in a name? That which we call a rose, by any other name would smell as sweet.” I mean if it's good enough for Romeo and Juliet, it's got to be ok for Not by the Playbook, right!?This week we are meeting three extraordinary women for whom their names mean something much more than just something they call themselves. In 1991 the Chancellor family welcomed their new daughter into the world. they named her Emily. A bright and active

This week’s Not by the Playbook is “crossing the line”.Aneta Grabmuller is both a winter and summer triathlete. She first started competing at the age of 15, but within a few years she had retired having fallen out of love with the sport. She had been subjected to behaviour from her coach that had crossed the line. She had been convinced that her weight was a problem and started to train harder and eat less. The strain on her body had caused bones to break whilst mentally she was depressed and anxious. Stepping away from the sport she dedicated herself to addressing this issue, one that many female athletes are affected by. She studied, became an IOC Young Leader and a certified safeguarding officer. She found a new way of training and rediscovered her love of the sport. Now aged 25, she is back and better than ever, and when not racing she continues to advocate of REDs (relative energy deficiency in sport).In 1992, the British 400m runner Derek Redmond popped his hamstring in the Olympic semi-final. In absol