Not by the Playbook

Sportshour comes from New Orleans on the eve of Super Bowl LIX with Katie Smith in the city to bring you the atmosphere and the stories ahead of Philadelphia Eagles against Kansas City Chiefs. Katie Smith meets Jackie Wallace who had it all, but the three-time Super Bowl star had a demon he couldn't deal with. After retirement, he slipped into addiction and lost everything. Ted Jackson was a photo...

It all comes down to this.... the unstoppable force meets the immovable object as the Philadelphia Eagles face off against the Kansas City Chiefs to the right to hoist the Lombardi Trophy. If the Chiefs win in New Orleans, they will become the first team to win three straight Super Bowls. Their date with destiny is against the Eagles, the team they beat to begin their Super Bowl trilogy two years...

The men's Six Nations get underway on Friday whilst current champions Ireland start their defence by welcoming England and their newly appointed captain Maro Itoje. When not leading his nations rugby team Maro collects African art and funds innovative schemes to help those who need help to attain the education they deserve. Born in North London to Nigerian parents Maro he's been telling Sportshour...

Unlike basketball's NBA and WNBA the sport of women's American tackle football is under developed. Women and men play flag football which is a non-contact variant of the game you'll see at the LA Olympics in three years, but there is no professional female equivalent to the NFL. But back in 2019, history was planned with the creation of the professional "Women's Football League Association". Santi...

For a long time, professional wrestling was the domain of men. Stars like The Undertaker and The Rock ruled the ring and our TV screens, but now it's the women of WWE who are making just as big an impact. Whilst a debate over what part wresting is a sport, or just entertainment, what can't be denied is the supreme fitness these athletes achieve in pursuit of their art, and the love they receive fr...

Former tennis professional Louise Pleming was travelling the globe as a tennis commentator and elite coach when her life took an unexpected turn. The Australian met Brian Turton whilst she was volunteering at a soup kitchen. Brian had always dreamt of a professional tennis career but instead he found himself living on the streets. Louise tells Sportshour’s Katie Smith how that chance meeting spark...

NBA star Victor Wembanyama playing one-on-one with fans in a New York park is something you would not expect – even more so when it was not basketball he was playing, but chess. Sportshour’s Katie Smith meets Dylan Rittman, one of Wembanyama’s chess opponents for an unlikely duel in the park. With the new world darts champion crowned, what impact is the sport having around the world? South Africa'...

***This episode contains discussions and references to extreme violence, sexual violence and domestic abuse. If you are suffering distress or despair and need support, you could speak to a health professional, or an organisation that offers support. Details of help available in many countries can be found at Befrienders Worldwide: befrienders.org*** Tracy Otto's life was changed forever one night...

We come full circle on a story we first covered in 2016 when we visited the exercise yard at San Quentin State prison in California. It houses the highest number of death row inmates in America but also has a sport sporty program designed to rehabilitate those who hope one day to be released. Rahsaan Thomas was one of those to benefit from the scheme. Released in 2023 we catch up with him to see h...

It's one of the sports stories of 2024. In November "Knight's Choice" squeezed home to win the Melbourne Cup by a nose. The 80-1 outsider was ridden by Irish jockey Robbie Dolan. Winning the so called "Race that stops a nation" made Robbie famous in Australia, or should that be even more famous! Because two years previous he was one of the finalists on the TV singing show The Voice! So, a little o...

2024 has been a monumental year for Australian Rhydian Cowley. He won bronze alongside team mate Jemima Montag at the Paris Olympics in the inaugural walking mixed team relay. He was also named the BBC Green Sport Award's World Athlete of the Year using his platform to spark debates about climate change and how it's affecting not only sport but the whole planet. Fuelled by homemade jam and some bi...

Hallucinations, crashes, and just 10 minutes sleep – Badlands ultra cycle race is not only a test of endurance but also the ultimate relationship test for the 2024 pairs winners. Danni Shrosbree and Bradley Shenton completed the gruelling 800km (497 miles) route, through the Andalusian mountains in Spain, in 53 hours and 30 minutes. The couple faced temperatures of up to 40C, bike damage, and they...

We’re used to celebrating the achievements of para-athletes on the track, but endurance running is still in its infancy. South African born Jacky Hunt-Broersma is changing that. She is at the forefront of amputee ultramarathon and trail running. A cancer survivor, she loves pushing the limits of what is possible. She has already run 104 marathons in 104 days and is now attempting to run from Las V...

Toulouse’s six European titles make them the most successful club in European rugby, and if you were to say the French club were out of this world, then you would be right. The city considers itself the aerospace capital of Europe and it turns out one of the club’s secrets to success has been to mix the methods and practices of those training to go into space adapted to the sports field. Sportshou...

How do you channel the passion, determination and fortitude to achieve something knowing you've lost friends doing the same thing? Professional skier Cody Townsend has lost many friends on the mountains he’s skiing down as he attempts to climb and ski all the routes detailed in the book, “The Fifty Classic Ski Descents of North America”. They're some of the most dangerous slopes on the continent a...

In 1989 Donald Trump put his name to a cycle race hoped would rival the Tour de France. This is the story behind the Tour de Trump. We hear what it was like to share the podium with Trump from the winner of the first race Dag Otto Lauritzen. Go behind the scenes with race organiser Mike Plant and hear about the legacy the race left from Peter Nye author of Hearts of Lions: The History of American...

With the World Series underway we hear from one man hoping one day to grace baseballs top table. After a life changing boating accident that saw one of Parker Byrd's legs amputated, the college baseball player fought back to become what is believed to be first NCAA Division I baseball player to play with a prosthetic leg. Parker Byrd told his inspirational story to Sportshour's Caroline Barker Did...

As the Formula 1 Drivers’ Championship heats up as the drivers head to Austin for the United States Grand Prix, it will also be a significant weekend for F1 broadcaster Jennie Gow. She tells Sportshour’s Caroline Barker how she has had to learn to write and speak again after a stroke in December 2022 and shares her love for F1 ahead of the release of her new book ‘How to Read F1’. Ultra-endurance...

World champion speed skater Elise Christie represented Great Britain at three Winter Olympics, but after announcing her retirement from the sport she worked three jobs and slept in her car. She tells Sportshour’s Caroline Barker how the content creation site Only Fans has helped her take back control of her life and what’s next after ruling out a return to the ice for the 2026 Winter Olympics with...

Ed Moses won 122 consecutive races including two Olympic gold medals over a nearly 10-year span in the 400m hurdles, but how did he become unbeatable? Sportshour’s Caroline Barker speaks to the double Olympic champion about his dominance, his then-revolutionary 13 strides and how an introduction from Morgan Freeman has finally brought his life to the screen. For the first time in the 173-year hist...

From sneaking out of her house to play football to becoming a trailblazer for others, Sportshour’s Caroline Barker speaks to Jackline Juma who has become the first female head coach in the Kenyan Premier League. The FC Talanta head coach has already made a winning start, and she's hoping her role will inspire more women and girls to follow their footballing dreams. British triathlete Kat Matthews...

When Jack Eyers decided to have his leg amputated at the age of 16 he was advised against it... but Jack was done with living in pain. What he didn't realise was that after his amputation a new world of opportunity would open up that has taken him from the Hollywood Hills to the cat walks of Milan and now to the Paralympic podium in Paris, where last month he won silver in the para canoe. Jack tel...

the UltraTrail du Mont Blanc is a unique challenge of endurance racing through the mountains of France on foot. It's made up of three races including the brutal 101 kilometre "Courmayeur-Champex-Chamonix" or the 'CCC'. Earlier this month, and fresh from returning from a serious knee injury, American Hayden Hawkes crossed the finish line to win. It was exactly seven years since he first tasted vict...

Live from Paris with all the action and stories from the 2024 Paralympic Games. PHOTO: Matt Stutzman of Team United States during the Men's Archery Individual Compound at Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games (Credit: Buda Mendes/Getty Images)

Live from Paris with all the action and stories from the 2024 Paralympic Games Photo: Dong Lu of team China competes in the Women's 200m individual medley final at the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games (CReditby Alex Pantling/Getty Images)