{"id":12410,"date":"2021-08-04T12:13:05","date_gmt":"2021-08-04T10:13:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.samdb.co.za\/blogs\/?p=12410"},"modified":"2021-08-04T12:13:09","modified_gmt":"2021-08-04T10:13:09","slug":"espns-144-to-take-viewers-inside-unprecedented-2020-wnba-season","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.samdb.co.za\/blogs\/blog\/2021\/08\/04\/espns-144-to-take-viewers-inside-unprecedented-2020-wnba-season\/","title":{"rendered":"ESPN’s “144” To Take Viewers Inside Unprecedented 2020 WNBA Season"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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ESPN Africa brings viewers the very latest from it\u2019s award-winning library of sports documentary films with 144<\/em><\/strong>, that goes behind the scenes of the unprecedented 2020 Women\u2019s National Basketball Association (WNBA) season. Premiering across Africa on ESPN (DStv 218, Starsat 248) this South African Women\u2019s Day, Monday 9 August at 11:45, with a repeat at 18:30 (CAT), the film offers exclusive access to the league\u2019s 144 female athletes as they experience the thrilling on- and off-court action that a WNBA season produces, but this time in a protected social environment or bubble (or \u2018wubble\u2019 as it would become became coined).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After the Covid-19 pandemic brought live sporting events to a halt, many leagues were forced to innovate to continue their seasons. The WNBA created a single site at the IMG Academy in Bradenton, Florida where 144 players across 12 teams played 147 games from July to October 2020. Directed by Lauren Stowell & Jenna Contreras, the latter who spent 62 days in the bubble, the documentary explores the season and everything that the players overcame to get through it: the Covid-19 pandemic, the demands of activism, and the rigors of an unrelenting schedule.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\nhttps:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=SaEboaRO7CM\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

WNBA All-Star and ESPN Commentator Chiney Ogwumike, who serves as Executive Producer on 144<\/em><\/strong>, said: \u201cDeveloping this documentary about my sisters in the WNBA and the powerful 2020 season has been an honor. 144<\/em><\/strong> amplifies the story of how our league helped create unprecedented social change while redefining how we see strong female athletes compete at the highest level. It is a privilege to showcase the 144 women in their vulnerability letting cameras behind-the-scenes, their dedication to social impact, and their strength in navigating through one of the most challenging seasons we have ever had.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Throughout the same day, 9 August, ESPN will premiere In Her Shoes<\/em><\/strong>,a series of documentary short films profiling world renowned female athletes that are driving change in sports, highlighting their journeys and their own perspectives on sports. The featured athletes include Naomi Osaka, Megan Rapinoe, Caterine Ibarguen, Ramla Ali, Ibtihaj Muhammad, Margielyn Didal, Nuria Disodado, Charlyn Corral, Alexa Moreno, Paola, Espinosa, Mariana Arceo and Kenia Lechuga.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cOn top of the unmatched sporting portfolio of US and select International leagues, ESPN is also committed to bring viewers the very best storytelling in sports, from documentaries, to premiere news and studio sports programming.\u201d says Christine Service, Senior Vice President and Country Manager of The Walt Disney Company Africa. \u201c144<\/em><\/strong> exemplifies this commitment and, together with In Her Shoes<\/em><\/strong>, provides an unique look into the inspiring tales behind challenges, triumphs and celebrates the incredible fortitude of female athletes\u201d she added.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How to tune in:<\/strong>
ESPN: DStv 218, Starsat 248
ESPN2: DStv 219, Starsat 249<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For updates from the world of American and other sports, fans can connect to @ESPNAfrica on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram or visit https:\/\/www.espn.com\/<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

ESPN Africa brings viewers the very latest from it\u2019s award-winning library of sports documentary films with 144, that goes behind the scenes of the unprecedented 2020 Women\u2019s National Basketball Association (WNBA) season. Premiering across Africa on ESPN (DStv 218, Starsat 248) this South African Women\u2019s Day, Monday 9 August at 11:45, with a repeat at… Continue reading ESPN’s “144” To Take Viewers Inside Unprecedented 2020 WNBA Season<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[223],"class_list":["post-12410","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-television","tag-espn","entry"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.samdb.co.za\/blogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12410","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.samdb.co.za\/blogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.samdb.co.za\/blogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.samdb.co.za\/blogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.samdb.co.za\/blogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=12410"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.samdb.co.za\/blogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12410\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.samdb.co.za\/blogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=12410"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.samdb.co.za\/blogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=12410"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.samdb.co.za\/blogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=12410"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}