Bigger Than A Game

Serena Williams is widely regarded as one of the best athletes of all time. But far too often her passion on the tennis court has been criticized as aggression. So why do Black sports women seem to attract more scrutiny than other athletes? Letisha Engracio Cardoso Brown says it’s because the same commonly-held stereotypes for Black women in society frequently get repurposed into sport. And: The USA men’s basketball team boasted a perfect Olympic record of 63-0. But Russia had developed a scrappy, up and coming team of their own. So, when the two basketball teams collided at the 1972 Olympics - it was bound to be a showdown of epic proportions. Christopher Elzey calls this game the greatest WTF moment in sports history and explains how it opens a window into Cold War animosity. Later in the show: From Stone Cold Steve Austin to The Undertaker, the 1990’s were one of professional wrestling's most popular eras. Marc Ouellette says this golden age of wrestling reflected a perceived decline in masculinity throughout society. Plus: Many elite athletes, including Eliud Klipchoge - the famous Kenyan who ran the fastest marathon in 2019 - have endorsed hydrogel technology. But does the stuff actually work? Dan Baur says it's inconclusive at best.