This week’s Team of the Week highlights the power of openness both in sport and beyond.
From Anthony Taylor bravely speaking out about the abuse he faces as a referee, to Lewis Moody sharing his MND diagnosis with courage and honesty, these stories remind us how important it is to talk and support one another especially around World Mental Health Day.
There’s plenty of positivity too, with Jordan Cox and Emma Lamb recognised as PCA Players of the Year, and record-breaking viewership for the WNBA Finals showing just how far women’s sport has come.
Anthony Taylor
Premier League referee
I just wanted to take a moment to congratulate Anthony Taylor for his brave interview with BBC Sport, calling out the abhorrent abuse that he and his family receive. In his interview with Dan Roan, Taylor has criticised the "expectation of perfection" culture that officials are subject to, and says his family no longer go to his matches because of the abuse he receives.
Jordan Cox and Emma Lamb
Men’s and Women’s players of the year
Cox (Essex and Oval Invincibles) and Lamb (Lancashire) both won Player of the Year at the Professional Cricketers’ Association Awards last night. Both cricketers have earned themselves places back in the international setup with England after impressive seasons, in which Cox hit his maiden international fifty and Lamb scored 1,312 runs in domestic cricket while also averaging 41 for England in one-day internationals.
WNBA
New reach for Women’s Basketball
The WNBA Finals Game 1 between Las Vegas and Phoenix has drawn the most viewers to a women’s basketball game since 1997, with an average of 1.9 million viewers which peaked at 2.5 million. Not only is this an all-time record, but compared to the same game last season, viewership increased by 62%. The significant increase in viewers shows how rapidly women’s sport is growing and by the looks of things, it has no intention of slowing down.
Lewis Moody
Former England captain
It’s been an emotional week in the rugby world, and nobody can even begin to imagine the emotion in the Moody household following the former England captain’s MND diagnosis. Moody, a member of England’s 2003 Rugby World Cup-winning side, told BBC Breakfast’s Sally Nugent about his diagnosis. Our thoughts go out to Lewis, and his loved ones.
