Burn It All Down

The Tokyo 2020/21 Olympics are the Pandemic Games. Even so, over two episodes (210 Part I and II) Burn It All Down will preview EVERY sport with excitement, cynicism, awe and critical thinking...

In this episode, Amira Rose Davis talks with Dr. Courtney Cox, Assistant Professor of Race and Sport in the Indigenous, Race, and Ethnic Studies Department at the University of Oregon, about the exhaustion of the last week -- and more -- for Black women in sports, in both the media and the academy...

In this episode, Jessica Luther, Amira Rose Davis and Brenda Elsey break-down what is happening in the wake of college athletes finally being able to use their own name, image and likeness (NIL). They discuss what the new NIL rules have meant on the ground, what guidance (or lack thereof) academic institutions and the NCAA have provided and how racism, sexism and capitalism are already impacting who gets what...

In this episode Lindsay Gibbs interviews Anne Orchier of NOlympics LA about opposition to the Toyko 2020 Olympics from on-the-ground organizers in Japan, which is largely led by unhoused people and those who will be displaced by the games. The discuss the privatization of public spaces and the aggressive policing of poor communities that happens regardless of where the Olympics are held, and how COVID-19 is heightening these trends...

Lindsay Gibbs, Shireen Ahmed and Jessica Luther bring Burn It All Down back after a short break. Like it or not (it's both!) the Tokyo 2020 Olympics are coming and this week BIAD covers the the incredible, the heartbreaking and the huh?!. They discuss COVID updates in Japan, US track and field sensations and amazing athletes from around the world breaking barriers. Then, Lindsay shares a pre-view of her interview with Anne Orchier of NOlympics L...

*Content Warning: Indigenous genocide and intergenerational trauma* In this episode, Shireen Ahmed interviews Averie Allard, a Métis woman from Treaty 1 Territory and volleyball setter of the University of Saskatchewan. They talk about how Averie has used sport for healing and to advocate for justice for Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women Girls and Two-Spirit People (MMIWG2S) in Canada and the US...

Brenda Elsey brings you a special Burn It All Down episode. Horseracing is undergoing exceptional drama this year sparked by Kentucky Derby star and scandal Medina Spirit and his trainer Bob Baffert. Brenda interviews three experts in the horse racing world: Joe Drape, New York Times reporter, Dr. Megan Kerford, racetrack veterinarian, and Dr...

The Montreal Canadiens are headed to the Stanley Cup Finals for the first time in 28 years. What is it like for their fans? Shireen chats with one partticular die-ard Habs fan: Her Maman. Dr. Tahira Ahmed joins Burn It All Down for this Hot Take on the ups and downs of being a Habs fan for almost 50 years. This episode was produced by Shireen Ahmed and Tressa Versteeg. Shelby Weldon is our social media and website specialist. Burn It All Down is part of the Blue Wire podcast network...

This week Jessica Luther interviews media scholar Dr. Jenn McClearen about her book "Fighting Visibility: Sports Media and Female Athletes in the UFC." They discuss the conflict of the representation of women in the UFC with the exploitation that those same women face in the sport. They also talk about the complicated effort to unionize UFC fighters and how to love women's sport and the UFC by illuminating the ways they needs to change. This episode was produced by Tressa Versteeg...

Shireen Ahmed interviews Anastasia Bucsis, 2-time speedskating Olympian for Team Canada and CBC Sports Analyst and host of Player's Own Voice Podcast. They discuss Anastasia's transition from professional athlete to journalist and the challenges of the 2020/21 Olympic games. Anastasia also shares her experience competing as the only out North American athlete at the 2014 Sochi Olympics and publicly opposing Russia's anti-LGBTQ laws...