New York’s Living Room Sumo Dohyo

Would you move heaven and earth to change your life? No? Well how about just your living room? When times got tough, New Yorker James Grammer found solace in sport, in particular the ancient Japanese sport of Sumo. But initially there was nowhere local to compete. While the parks were fine in the summer, the traditional sumo loincloth would be a bit chilly in winter ! So James turned his apartment into a Beya, the name for where Sumo wrestlers train. He’ll tell us the joys and drawbacks of sumo wrestling at home and his ambitions going forward as well as why he has been so keen on big contact sports growing up.</p>Iranian born film director Milad Alami moved to Sweden as a child refugee and his latest movie OPPONENT uses the sport of wrestling to highlight the challenges encountered by refugees across Europe. Milad draws on his own experiences to tell the story of an Iranian wrestler who worn down by the asylum process seeks out the one thing he knows and starts to train with the Swedish wrestling team. He tells us why he chose wrestling, why he wanted to highlight the challenge of refugees fitting into a new country and how important it was for him to cast real refugees in the film.</p>We’ll get the inside track on horse racing’s oldest racecourse, the Roodee – more commonly known as Chester Racecourse. Sportshour reporter Richard Padula finds out why former Ballon d’or winner Michael Owen is so enamoured with the sport and the course.</p>On Eurovision Grand Final day, BBC Sport’s music aficionado Pat Nevin casts his ear across the fancied songs for this year’s competition. Croatia are strong favourites but are they Pat’s?</p>Plus, what links American footballer Brandon Mebane, Footballer Douglas Luiz and Formula One Driver Daniel Ricciardo? The answer – Bellydancing and to mark World Bellydancing Day, we’ll get a tutorial from Heather Eggins from Belly Dance Heaven.</p>Photo: Sumo wrestlers practice in James Grammer's apartment turned sumo Beya in New York. (Credit: James Grammer)</p>

00:36:14

Jake Peacock: Entertaining and inspiring through Muay Thai

Caroline Barker speaks to Jake Peacock on how he wants to entertain and inspire the world through his achievements in the Muay Thai ring. Peacock, who was born with one arm shorter than the other, was bullied at school and still receives negative messages on social media, but he says his greatest satisfaction comes from inspiring people.</p>From free classes and sharing equipment to the Olympic Games, Samantha Catantan is the first Filipino fencer to qualify for the Olympics in 32 years - and the first woman. Her qualification came after a significant injury setback and she’s not the only Catantan sibling with an Olympic dream.</p>Double Olympic rowing champion Heather Stanning has recently completed Marathon des Sables, a six-day footrace over 250km in the Sahara Desert. Is the “toughest footrace on earth” her toughest challenge yet?</p>And, 4 May is also known as 'Star Wars Day' so to mark the day Sportshour finds out more about the Stars Wars inspired sport of lightsaber duelling with France’s Celine Marie Mercier.</p>(Photo: Jake Peacock after winning on his ONE Championship debut against Kohei Shinjo in Bangkok in April 2024. Credit: ONE Championship)</p>

00:30:44

'I am good enough, I am strong enough'

***This episode contains discussions and references to suicide. 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***</p>Depression, health issues and the impact of the covid pandemic are familiar to many the world over. Canoeist Esti Olivier has been through it all and now has her eyes firmly fixed on competing at the Olympics in Paris. She tells us the highs and lows of the past few years of her life including missing out on the Tokyo Olympics. The moment she booked her place in Paris is one you’ve probably never heard before.</p>Michael Anton Monsour is a club owner hoping to change the way sport looks at head injuries - by prevention. His club, Manchester ’62, who play in the top division in Gibraltar, made history with all 10 outfield players wearing protective headgear in a match. Michael is hoping to make as big a global impact as the club his team are named after - Manchester United – and tell us why the issue of head injuries is so important to him. Star player Ahmed Salam also tells us what it’s like to wear the headgear during games.</p>Darcy Budworth tells about the “alley-cat” race series Take The Bridge that she founded. The races held in the dead of night in some of the worlds biggest cities, have a start point and an end but the route is up to you. The only rule is that you have to make the checkpoints dotted around the city selected. Nine years after its creation, Darcy tells us why it was important to her to bring the fun back into running.</p>And the London Marathon’s “wine guy” drops in. Wine specialist Tom Gilbey went viral on social media, when he tested his palate every mile of the London Marathon, guessing which wine he was being offered. He tells us why he did it and gives Caroline a wine-tasting lesson.</p>Photo: Esti Olivier takes part in a Canoe Sprint race. (Credit: Sean van der Westhuizen)</p>

00:30:41

'It's a laugh in the face of adversity'

***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***</p>Tracy Otto is on the verge of representing the Team USA at the Paralympics in Archery for the first time. But representing the United States in Archery was not what Tracy thought she would be doing five years ago. Back then, in her early 20s she was a student at the University of Tampa and an aspiring fitness model. But one night would change her life forever. In 2019, a brutal attack by an ex-partner left her paralyzed from the chest down with limited use of her arms and hands and the loss of her left eye. She describes that night, the impact on her life and how she is hoping to use the Paralympics to empower herself and others.</p>The ironman triathlon is one of the most gruelling events in world sport. It covers over 200 kilometres with a swim, a bike ride and a run. But how about making it just that little bit more difficult ? Australia's David Lowry has been doing just that. He tells us about trading the traditional slick and aerodynamic road bike for a BMX version in memory of his brother Damien, who he lost to suicide. And he wants to ask the all important question – R U OK?</p>We also hear from 83-year-old Kiko Rutter. He will be running the London Marathon, raising money for a mission hospital close to his heart but on the other side of the world. The hospital on Vella Lavella, one of the Solomon Islands in the South Pacific was ran by his father ran over 80 years ago. Kiko wants to continue his good work to make sure those most in need are provided for.</p>And how far can you swim? How about how high? Seven “mad swimmers” will be looking to break an unwanted world record of the highest altitude swim in a new body of water found in the Himalayas. Former South African netball star Vanes-Mari du Toit is one of those attempting the feat at 6450 metres and tells us why it’s another alarming sign </p>(Photo: Tracy Otto. Credit: Tracy Otto)</p>

00:30:28

Tottenham, YouTube and being authentic

Tottenham Hotspur goalkeeper Bára Votíková tells Sportshour's Caroline Barker about how she balances her football career alongside being one of the Czech Republic's best known and most followed content creators. She tells us about using her social media platforms to advocate for gay rights, and how she deals with the haters.</p>New Zealand pole vaulter Eliza McCartney is about to take a leap of faith ahead of the Paris Olympics. Since winning bronze at the 2016 Games in Rio, the 27-year-old has suffered many years of injury frustration. However 2024 brought silver at the World Athletics Indoor Championships in Glasgow - her first international podium finish in six years, since taking Commonwealth silver on the Gold Coast. She tells us about life on the road with a massive stick!</p>When French midfielder Aurelien Tchouemeni was asked earlier this season by his team Real Madrid to play a match for them in central defence, all he needed to help him prepare for the game was a virtual reality headset in his living room. But, does the technology really work and how can it help improve players skill set? Sportshour’s Andy Jones tried the new tech out to see if he could go from his messy living room to just plain old Messi.</p>Photo: Barbora Votikova, celebrates the UEFA Women's Champions League quarter Final First Leg match between Bayern Munchen and Paris Saint-German March 22, 2022 (Credit Arthur Thill ATPImages/Getty Images)</p>

00:33:46

Returning from the depths of despair

Please note: This episode contains discussions and references to mental health and drug 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: www.befrienders.org</p>For 10 years, quarterback Erik Kramer had it all - fame, fortune and the chance to land the NFL's biggest prize with the Detroit Lions and then the Chicago Bears. Despite the trappings that success brings, Kramer carried a burden - crushing depression that worsened following personal losses after retirement. He's been telling Sportshour's Caroline Barker about what led him to the depths of despair and redemption.</p>India's premier triathlete Pragnya Mohan is attempting to qualify for Paris and become the first Indian triathlete to compete at an Olympic Games. If she does, she hopes it will produce the kind of media exposure which will encourage other girls to take up professional sport in her country, despite the challenges, something she had to overcome herself. As a young girl she repaired an old abandoned bike and set to work on her dream. Now she runs a project aimed at giving every girl in India access to a bicycle We find out about the most dominant football team you have never heard of... The women who played for them and the woman who is trying to make sure the world knows their story... back in the 1960's women were banned from playing football in the UK, but that didn't stop some teams from trying... and one team showed the way. Manchester based Corinthians. In fact, they conquered the world! Now a film is being produced to share this forgotten piece of football history. We speak to a former player and the film's producer </p>Photo: Erik Kramer #12 of the Chicago Bears sets up to pass against the Minnesota Vikings during an NFL football game on September 3, 1995 at Soldier Field in Chicago, Illinois. Kramer played for the Bears from 1994-1998. (Credit: Focus on Sport/Getty Images)</p>

00:44:48

I want to run to the moon!

In March 2024 Camille Heron cemented her place as the greatest Ultra Marathon runner of all time. She broke the six day world best, clocking an astonishing 560 miles. That's further than running from New York to Washington and back in 6 days, roughly the distance of Accra to Lagos and back in SIX DAYS!! She's been telling Sportshour's Nishat Ladha about her achievement.</p>As Cambridge and Oxford line up against each other, who will mastermind their way to victory in the 2024 University boat race? Oxford Women's President Ella Stadler takes on her Cambridge counterpart Jenna Armstrong in special edition of Sportshour's University Challenge.</p>Football means a lot of things to different people and for many it's an integral part of life. It certainly is for author Mark Davies, who a few years ago was diagnosed with an incurable cancer. His whole world changed forever, except for one thing, one constant. Football was his crutch that, as it turned out, supported him through the very darkest times and it's why he wrote his book "A Love Letter to Football"</p>Jeanee Crane-Mauzy is hoping to compete at the next Winter Olympics for the country she has just taken citizenship for, Vanuatu. The South Pacific islands, not known for its winter sports, is under major strain fighting the effects of climate change. Jeanee, who has competed at the Freestyle Ski World Cup in the Ski Halfpipe, is hoping to raise awareness of the situation by competing on the world's biggest stage for her newly adopted country at the Games in Italy in 2026.</p>Photo: Camille Heron completing her record breaking run. Credit: @runcamille/Instagram)</p>

00:34:59

"I was told to stop playing immediately"

Rikke Sevecke was living the dream! She'd fought the odds to make it into professional football despite all the barriers in her way. She'd played in England for Everton and represented her country, Denmark at the World Cup, and had just signed for one of the biggest teams in America. Living the dream. Then just two months ago in January 2024, out of nowhere, she was ordered to stop playing, immediately. It had taken just one phone call from a doctor to bring her world crashing down around her. Rikke had been diagnosed with a serious heart condition, and if she carried on playing it could have proved fatal. She's been speaking to Sportshour's Caroline Barker about how she is coming to terms with the life changing moment.</p>US women’s scrum half Alena Olsen on channelling the heart break of missing out on the Tokyo Games, by putting in everything she can into making the Paris Olympics, as part of the US Women’s Sevens squad. She's tells us that despite being a part of the bronze medal winning World Cup team in 2022, her Olympic dreams still hang in the balance.</p>What does it take to become the NFL's fan of the year? Comedian Tom Grossi knows, he picked up the award last year after he successfully completed seemingly impossible challenge of visiting all thirty NFL stadia in just thirty days?! But it came at a cost and he has the scars to prove it!</p>Photo: Denmark's Rikke Sevecke is on hand as Xu Huan of China PR fails to save a shot on goal during the FIFA Women's World Cup match between Denmark and China at Perth Rectangular Stadium on July 22, 2023 in Perth, Australia. (Credit: by Paul Kane/Getty Images)</p>

00:37:45

Introducing… The Black 14

Sport, racism and protests are about to change the lives of “the Black 14” American footballers. It’s 1969 in the United States. They’ve arrived on scholarships at the University of Wyoming to play for its Cowboys American football team. It was a predominantly white college. The team is treated like a second religion. Then, the players make a decision to take a stand against racism in a game against another university.</p>This is episode one of a four-part season from the Amazing Sport Stories podcast. </p>Content warning: This episode contains lived experiences which involve the use of strong racist language.</p>

00:33:04

"I was told to stop playing immediately"

Rikke Sevecke was living the dream! She'd fought the odds to make it into professional football despite all the barriers in her way. She'd played in England for Everton and represented her country, Denmark at the World Cup, and had just signed for one of the biggest teams in America. Living the dream. </p>Then just two months ago in January 2024, out of nowhere, she was ordered to stop playing, immediately. It had taken just one phone call from a doctor to bring her world crashing down around her. Rikke had been diagnosed with a serious heart condition, and if she carried on playing it could have proved fatal. </p>She's been speaking to Sportshour's Caroline Barker about how she is coming to terms with the life changing moment.</p>Photo: Rikke Sevecke #4 of Denmark goes forward during a FIFA World Cup 2023 Group D match between Denmark and China PR at Perth Rectangular Stadium on July 22, 2023 in Perth, Australia. (Creidt: Daniela Porcelli/ISI Photos/Getty Images)</p>

00:22:18