Podcast appearances and mentions of lindsay krasnoff

Season 6 Bonus Episode. Today, we'll be talking about basketball and the power of sports diplomacy as we celebrate World Basketball Day – the first sport ever to receive the honor from the United Nations – which now takes place every year on December 21st.   Today, Kelly talks with Lindsay Krasnoff about basketball and the history of sports diplomacy. Just in time for World Basketball Day, Lindsay has published a case study with ISD on the fascinating history of basketball diplomacy between France and China during the cold war, which we encourage listeners to check out via our case studies library. Find the store on our website, isd.georgetown.edu. Professors can also access all case studies for free via our faculty lounge.    Dr. Lindsay Sarah Krasnoff is a historian, writer, and consultant working at the intersection of global sports, communications, and diplomacy. Author of Basketball Empire: France and the Making of a Global NBA and WNBA published by Bloomsbury in 2023, her work on French and global sports appears with CNN International, The Washington Post, The New York Times, and more. A veteran of the U.S. Department of State's Office of the Historian, Krasnoff co-directed the Basketball Diplomacy in Africa Oral History Project for the Centre for International Studies and Diplomacy (SOAS University of London) as a Research Associate, and lectures on sports diplomacy and global sports at the NYU Tisch Institute for Global Sports.   The opinions expressed in this conversation are strictly those of the participants and do not represent the views of Georgetown University or any government entity. Produced by Freddie Mallinson and Jarrett Dang. Recorded on December 13, 2023. Diplomatic Immunity, a podcast from the Institute for the Study of Diplomacy at Georgetown University, brings you frank and candid conversations with experts on the issues facing diplomats and national security decision-makers around the world. Funding support from the Carnegie Corporation of New York. For more, visit our website, and follow us on Twitter @GUDiplomacy.  

Today we are joined by Dr. Lindsay Krasnoff, who is an historian, specializing in global sport, communications and diplomacy. She is also the Director of FranceandUS, and she lectures on sports diplomacy at New York University Tisch Institute of Global Sport. We met to talk about her most recent book: Basketball Empire: France and the Making of a Global NBA and WNBA (Bloomsbury, 2023). In our conversation, we discussed the rise of basketball in France, the differences between French and American basketball, and the way that French basketball stars such as Boris Diaw exemplify the new global “empire” of basketball that incorporates Africa, France and its overseas departments, and the USA. Krasnoff divides Basketball Empire into three parts that together investigate how French basketball developed from a low point in the middle of the 20th century to a global powerhouse contributing players to the NBA and the WNBA almost every year. Krasnoff argues that French basketball's success hinges on their ability make use of their connections both with the United States and with their former empire. In examining the growth of basketball in France, Krasnoff traces a sporting genealogy that links together players, coaches, and even commentators from around the globe who compete together in France and help produce a distinctive French style of basketball that nevertheless has appeal outside of the hexagon. In Basketball Empire, Krasnoff's first section takes off from her previous work on French association football, which looked at the development of Les Bleus. In the 1950s and 1960s, French basketball too was in crisis. In response, the French government, the Fédération française de basket-ball (FFBB), and even some sporting associations sought out new ways to improve the quality of play in France. Paris University Club brought in Americans who had played basketball in the NCAA but were now living in France to teach American approaches to the game. Individual players, including one of the earliest female French basketball stars Elisabeth Riffiod, watched film of American professionals like Bill Russell. The government redeveloped a national training centre: the National Institute of Sport, Expertise, and Performance (INSEP.) The French League professionalized in 1987. Since the 1990s, French basketball has enjoyed a rising number of successful EuroBasket and Olympic campaigns, including a men's silver and a women's bronze in 2020/21. Basketball Empire's second section uses micro-biographies to explore the ways that contemporary French players developed their skills, how they made their moves into the NCAA, the NBA or the WNBA, and the challenges and opportunities that these moves provided them as players. In this section in particular, Krasnoff's ability land and conduct interviews shines. She shows how diverse players, including Boris Diaw, Sandrine Gruda, Nicolas Batum, Marine Johannès, Diandra Tchatchouang, Evan Fournier, Mickaël Gelabale, and Rudy Gobert have become not only basketball stars but also informal diplomats that help build connections and translate between Africa, France and the United States. In the final section, Krasnoff considers why the French have been so successful at producing high quality men's and women's basketball players. She credits la formation à la française: the specific French training system that includes a national sports training center (the INSEP) as well as local and regional basketball academies (pôles espoirs). The future looks bright for French basketball and in our interview Krasnoff predicts French and US success in the upcoming Paris 2024 Olympiad. Keith Rathbone is a Senior Lecturer at Macquarie University in Sydney, Australia. He researches twentieth-century French social and cultural history. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Today we are joined by Dr. Lindsay Krasnoff, who is an historian, specializing in global sport, communications and diplomacy. She is also the Director of FranceandUS, and she lectures on sports diplomacy at New York University Tisch Institute of Global Sport. We met to talk about her most recent book: Basketball Empire: France and the Making of a Global NBA and WNBA (Bloomsbury, 2023). In our conversation, we discussed the rise of basketball in France, the differences between French and American basketball, and the way that French basketball stars such as Boris Diaw exemplify the new global “empire” of basketball that incorporates Africa, France and its overseas departments, and the USA. Krasnoff divides Basketball Empire into three parts that together investigate how French basketball developed from a low point in the middle of the 20th century to a global powerhouse contributing players to the NBA and the WNBA almost every year. Krasnoff argues that French basketball's success hinges on their ability make use of their connections both with the United States and with their former empire. In examining the growth of basketball in France, Krasnoff traces a sporting genealogy that links together players, coaches, and even commentators from around the globe who compete together in France and help produce a distinctive French style of basketball that nevertheless has appeal outside of the hexagon. In Basketball Empire, Krasnoff's first section takes off from her previous work on French association football, which looked at the development of Les Bleus. In the 1950s and 1960s, French basketball too was in crisis. In response, the French government, the Fédération française de basket-ball (FFBB), and even some sporting associations sought out new ways to improve the quality of play in France. Paris University Club brought in Americans who had played basketball in the NCAA but were now living in France to teach American approaches to the game. Individual players, including one of the earliest female French basketball stars Elisabeth Riffiod, watched film of American professionals like Bill Russell. The government redeveloped a national training centre: the National Institute of Sport, Expertise, and Performance (INSEP.) The French League professionalized in 1987. Since the 1990s, French basketball has enjoyed a rising number of successful EuroBasket and Olympic campaigns, including a men's silver and a women's bronze in 2020/21. Basketball Empire's second section uses micro-biographies to explore the ways that contemporary French players developed their skills, how they made their moves into the NCAA, the NBA or the WNBA, and the challenges and opportunities that these moves provided them as players. In this section in particular, Krasnoff's ability land and conduct interviews shines. She shows how diverse players, including Boris Diaw, Sandrine Gruda, Nicolas Batum, Marine Johannès, Diandra Tchatchouang, Evan Fournier, Mickaël Gelabale, and Rudy Gobert have become not only basketball stars but also informal diplomats that help build connections and translate between Africa, France and the United States. In the final section, Krasnoff considers why the French have been so successful at producing high quality men's and women's basketball players. She credits la formation à la française: the specific French training system that includes a national sports training center (the INSEP) as well as local and regional basketball academies (pôles espoirs). The future looks bright for French basketball and in our interview Krasnoff predicts French and US success in the upcoming Paris 2024 Olympiad. Keith Rathbone is a Senior Lecturer at Macquarie University in Sydney, Australia. He researches twentieth-century French social and cultural history. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Today we are joined by Dr. Lindsay Krasnoff, who is an historian, specializing in global sport, communications and diplomacy. She is also the Director of FranceandUS, and she lectures on sports diplomacy at New York University Tisch Institute of Global Sport. We met to talk about her most recent book: Basketball Empire: France and the Making of a Global NBA and WNBA (Bloomsbury, 2023). In our conversation, we discussed the rise of basketball in France, the differences between French and American basketball, and the way that French basketball stars such as Boris Diaw exemplify the new global “empire” of basketball that incorporates Africa, France and its overseas departments, and the USA. Krasnoff divides Basketball Empire into three parts that together investigate how French basketball developed from a low point in the middle of the 20th century to a global powerhouse contributing players to the NBA and the WNBA almost every year. Krasnoff argues that French basketball's success hinges on their ability make use of their connections both with the United States and with their former empire. In examining the growth of basketball in France, Krasnoff traces a sporting genealogy that links together players, coaches, and even commentators from around the globe who compete together in France and help produce a distinctive French style of basketball that nevertheless has appeal outside of the hexagon. In Basketball Empire, Krasnoff's first section takes off from her previous work on French association football, which looked at the development of Les Bleus. In the 1950s and 1960s, French basketball too was in crisis. In response, the French government, the Fédération française de basket-ball (FFBB), and even some sporting associations sought out new ways to improve the quality of play in France. Paris University Club brought in Americans who had played basketball in the NCAA but were now living in France to teach American approaches to the game. Individual players, including one of the earliest female French basketball stars Elisabeth Riffiod, watched film of American professionals like Bill Russell. The government redeveloped a national training centre: the National Institute of Sport, Expertise, and Performance (INSEP.) The French League professionalized in 1987. Since the 1990s, French basketball has enjoyed a rising number of successful EuroBasket and Olympic campaigns, including a men's silver and a women's bronze in 2020/21. Basketball Empire's second section uses micro-biographies to explore the ways that contemporary French players developed their skills, how they made their moves into the NCAA, the NBA or the WNBA, and the challenges and opportunities that these moves provided them as players. In this section in particular, Krasnoff's ability land and conduct interviews shines. She shows how diverse players, including Boris Diaw, Sandrine Gruda, Nicolas Batum, Marine Johannès, Diandra Tchatchouang, Evan Fournier, Mickaël Gelabale, and Rudy Gobert have become not only basketball stars but also informal diplomats that help build connections and translate between Africa, France and the United States. In the final section, Krasnoff considers why the French have been so successful at producing high quality men's and women's basketball players. She credits la formation à la française: the specific French training system that includes a national sports training center (the INSEP) as well as local and regional basketball academies (pôles espoirs). The future looks bright for French basketball and in our interview Krasnoff predicts French and US success in the upcoming Paris 2024 Olympiad. Keith Rathbone is a Senior Lecturer at Macquarie University in Sydney, Australia. He researches twentieth-century French social and cultural history. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/french-studies

Today we are joined by Dr. Lindsay Krasnoff, who is an historian, specializing in global sport, communications and diplomacy. She is also the Director of FranceandUS, and she lectures on sports diplomacy at New York University Tisch Institute of Global Sport. We met to talk about her most recent book: Basketball Empire: France and the Making of a Global NBA and WNBA (Bloomsbury, 2023). In our conversation, we discussed the rise of basketball in France, the differences between French and American basketball, and the way that French basketball stars such as Boris Diaw exemplify the new global “empire” of basketball that incorporates Africa, France and its overseas departments, and the USA. Krasnoff divides Basketball Empire into three parts that together investigate how French basketball developed from a low point in the middle of the 20th century to a global powerhouse contributing players to the NBA and the WNBA almost every year. Krasnoff argues that French basketball's success hinges on their ability make use of their connections both with the United States and with their former empire. In examining the growth of basketball in France, Krasnoff traces a sporting genealogy that links together players, coaches, and even commentators from around the globe who compete together in France and help produce a distinctive French style of basketball that nevertheless has appeal outside of the hexagon. In Basketball Empire, Krasnoff's first section takes off from her previous work on French association football, which looked at the development of Les Bleus. In the 1950s and 1960s, French basketball too was in crisis. In response, the French government, the Fédération française de basket-ball (FFBB), and even some sporting associations sought out new ways to improve the quality of play in France. Paris University Club brought in Americans who had played basketball in the NCAA but were now living in France to teach American approaches to the game. Individual players, including one of the earliest female French basketball stars Elisabeth Riffiod, watched film of American professionals like Bill Russell. The government redeveloped a national training centre: the National Institute of Sport, Expertise, and Performance (INSEP.) The French League professionalized in 1987. Since the 1990s, French basketball has enjoyed a rising number of successful EuroBasket and Olympic campaigns, including a men's silver and a women's bronze in 2020/21. Basketball Empire's second section uses micro-biographies to explore the ways that contemporary French players developed their skills, how they made their moves into the NCAA, the NBA or the WNBA, and the challenges and opportunities that these moves provided them as players. In this section in particular, Krasnoff's ability land and conduct interviews shines. She shows how diverse players, including Boris Diaw, Sandrine Gruda, Nicolas Batum, Marine Johannès, Diandra Tchatchouang, Evan Fournier, Mickaël Gelabale, and Rudy Gobert have become not only basketball stars but also informal diplomats that help build connections and translate between Africa, France and the United States. In the final section, Krasnoff considers why the French have been so successful at producing high quality men's and women's basketball players. She credits la formation à la française: the specific French training system that includes a national sports training center (the INSEP) as well as local and regional basketball academies (pôles espoirs). The future looks bright for French basketball and in our interview Krasnoff predicts French and US success in the upcoming Paris 2024 Olympiad. Keith Rathbone is a Senior Lecturer at Macquarie University in Sydney, Australia. He researches twentieth-century French social and cultural history. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/european-studies

Today we are joined by Dr. Lindsay Krasnoff, who is an historian, specializing in global sport, communications and diplomacy. She is also the Director of FranceandUS, and she lectures on sports diplomacy at New York University Tisch Institute of Global Sport. We met to talk about her most recent book: Basketball Empire: France and the Making of a Global NBA and WNBA (Bloomsbury, 2023). In our conversation, we discussed the rise of basketball in France, the differences between French and American basketball, and the way that French basketball stars such as Boris Diaw exemplify the new global “empire” of basketball that incorporates Africa, France and its overseas departments, and the USA. Krasnoff divides Basketball Empire into three parts that together investigate how French basketball developed from a low point in the middle of the 20th century to a global powerhouse contributing players to the NBA and the WNBA almost every year. Krasnoff argues that French basketball's success hinges on their ability make use of their connections both with the United States and with their former empire. In examining the growth of basketball in France, Krasnoff traces a sporting genealogy that links together players, coaches, and even commentators from around the globe who compete together in France and help produce a distinctive French style of basketball that nevertheless has appeal outside of the hexagon. In Basketball Empire, Krasnoff's first section takes off from her previous work on French association football, which looked at the development of Les Bleus. In the 1950s and 1960s, French basketball too was in crisis. In response, the French government, the Fédération française de basket-ball (FFBB), and even some sporting associations sought out new ways to improve the quality of play in France. Paris University Club brought in Americans who had played basketball in the NCAA but were now living in France to teach American approaches to the game. Individual players, including one of the earliest female French basketball stars Elisabeth Riffiod, watched film of American professionals like Bill Russell. The government redeveloped a national training centre: the National Institute of Sport, Expertise, and Performance (INSEP.) The French League professionalized in 1987. Since the 1990s, French basketball has enjoyed a rising number of successful EuroBasket and Olympic campaigns, including a men's silver and a women's bronze in 2020/21. Basketball Empire's second section uses micro-biographies to explore the ways that contemporary French players developed their skills, how they made their moves into the NCAA, the NBA or the WNBA, and the challenges and opportunities that these moves provided them as players. In this section in particular, Krasnoff's ability land and conduct interviews shines. She shows how diverse players, including Boris Diaw, Sandrine Gruda, Nicolas Batum, Marine Johannès, Diandra Tchatchouang, Evan Fournier, Mickaël Gelabale, and Rudy Gobert have become not only basketball stars but also informal diplomats that help build connections and translate between Africa, France and the United States. In the final section, Krasnoff considers why the French have been so successful at producing high quality men's and women's basketball players. She credits la formation à la française: the specific French training system that includes a national sports training center (the INSEP) as well as local and regional basketball academies (pôles espoirs). The future looks bright for French basketball and in our interview Krasnoff predicts French and US success in the upcoming Paris 2024 Olympiad. Keith Rathbone is a Senior Lecturer at Macquarie University in Sydney, Australia. He researches twentieth-century French social and cultural history. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/sports

Today we are joined by Dr. Lindsay Krasnoff, who is an historian, specializing in global sport, communications and diplomacy. She is also the Director of FranceandUS, and she lectures on sports diplomacy at New York University Tisch Institute of Global Sport. We met to talk about her most recent book: Basketball Empire: France and the Making of a Global NBA and WNBA (Bloomsbury, 2023). In our conversation, we discussed the rise of basketball in France, the differences between French and American basketball, and the way that French basketball stars such as Boris Diaw exemplify the new global “empire” of basketball that incorporates Africa, France and its overseas departments, and the USA. Krasnoff divides Basketball Empire into three parts that together investigate how French basketball developed from a low point in the middle of the 20th century to a global powerhouse contributing players to the NBA and the WNBA almost every year. Krasnoff argues that French basketball's success hinges on their ability make use of their connections both with the United States and with their former empire. In examining the growth of basketball in France, Krasnoff traces a sporting genealogy that links together players, coaches, and even commentators from around the globe who compete together in France and help produce a distinctive French style of basketball that nevertheless has appeal outside of the hexagon. In Basketball Empire, Krasnoff's first section takes off from her previous work on French association football, which looked at the development of Les Bleus. In the 1950s and 1960s, French basketball too was in crisis. In response, the French government, the Fédération française de basket-ball (FFBB), and even some sporting associations sought out new ways to improve the quality of play in France. Paris University Club brought in Americans who had played basketball in the NCAA but were now living in France to teach American approaches to the game. Individual players, including one of the earliest female French basketball stars Elisabeth Riffiod, watched film of American professionals like Bill Russell. The government redeveloped a national training centre: the National Institute of Sport, Expertise, and Performance (INSEP.) The French League professionalized in 1987. Since the 1990s, French basketball has enjoyed a rising number of successful EuroBasket and Olympic campaigns, including a men's silver and a women's bronze in 2020/21. Basketball Empire's second section uses micro-biographies to explore the ways that contemporary French players developed their skills, how they made their moves into the NCAA, the NBA or the WNBA, and the challenges and opportunities that these moves provided them as players. In this section in particular, Krasnoff's ability land and conduct interviews shines. She shows how diverse players, including Boris Diaw, Sandrine Gruda, Nicolas Batum, Marine Johannès, Diandra Tchatchouang, Evan Fournier, Mickaël Gelabale, and Rudy Gobert have become not only basketball stars but also informal diplomats that help build connections and translate between Africa, France and the United States. In the final section, Krasnoff considers why the French have been so successful at producing high quality men's and women's basketball players. She credits la formation à la française: the specific French training system that includes a national sports training center (the INSEP) as well as local and regional basketball academies (pôles espoirs). The future looks bright for French basketball and in our interview Krasnoff predicts French and US success in the upcoming Paris 2024 Olympiad. Keith Rathbone is a Senior Lecturer at Macquarie University in Sydney, Australia. He researches twentieth-century French social and cultural history. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/new-books-network

Dr. Lindsay Krasnoff talks to Dave about her career as a historian, author and consultant on sports diplomacy, the role sports has historically played as a soft power for nations and the evolution of basketball on the African continent.

In 1998, the French football team won the World Cup for the first time, on home soil. The nation fell in love with heroes such as Zinedine Zidane and Patrick Vieira, who came to be celebrated as symbols of assimilation in the postcolonial age, but the French had not always held the sport or its athletes in such high esteem. After the euphoria of France's World Cup and European Cup triumphs in 1998 and 2000, the team's relationship with the French public deteriorated. Disappointment on the pitch, combined with behavioural and disciplinary issues off it, led to tension. The culture of football celebrity seemed to fuel public antagonism towards uneducated athletes, who were accruing vast sums of wealth at a time when the country's economy had been crippled by the 2008 financial crash. While some have argued that criticism of these players was often racially coded, today's guest - Dr. Lindsay Krasnoff - suggests that the anti-soccer backlash is less to do with overt racism and more about what it means to be French culturally. How does French culture view celebrity, and how have its footballers adopted or rejected the trappings of fame? How has the French national side helped the nation heal after a number of terrorist attacks in recent years? And is French society more meritocratic than the societies of nations such as the UK? ...all this and more in the fifth episode of the football and society podcast. *** If you like the podcast, please subscribe and give us a review via your platform of choice. Follow us on Twitter: www.twitter.com/footballsocpod Follow Lindsay on Twitter: www.twitter.com/lempika7 *** Each week, Ash, Chris and Norman explore societal issues through the lens of the beautiful game. From the ethics of gambling sponsorship and the trauma of a stadium move to the experience of female officials and what a stadium move means for fans, we'll be covering it all each week with expert guests from the worlds of sports journalism and sociology.

Believe it or not, the world of sports and the world of global communications have a lot in common. Today's Pitchin' and Sippin' guest, Lindsay Krasnoff is living proof of that! Lindsay is a historian, consultant, published author, and journalist who works at the intersection of global sports, communications, and diplomacy. She also holds a PhD in History, MA degrees in both Journalism and French Studies, and a BA in International Affairs. She's written for outlets such as CNN International, VICE Sports, ESPN, The Washington Post, The New Yorker, and many others. This makes her a true sports specialist dedicated to bringing innovative information strategies and storytelling to diverse audiences worldwide. And she's here today to tell us all about it!Highlights:Lindsay walks us through her impressive resume and explains how she managed to cross her love for sports from a really young age with her background in storytelling and communications. What is sports diplomacy and why is it so important to global communication?How storytelling goes beyond borders, as a universal practice that the media and audiences both respond to around the globe.A typical  day in the life of a sports diplomat.What working as a French sports specialist looks like.How becoming a business owner launching her own consulting services provided a new perspective into the world of communications and media.The importance of identifying your added value and niche in order to differentiate yourself from others when starting your own business.To learn more about Lindsay, you can visit her website, Twitter, and LinkedIn. Interested in learning more about Pitchin'? Follow me on Instagram or book a Free Mini PR Strategy Call Here.

In this episode, Niki, Natalia, and Neil discuss the Women’s World Cup, the life and legacy of Ross Perot, and the case against Jeffrey Epstein. Support Past Present on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/pastpresentpodcast Here are some links and references mentioned during this week’s show:  Women’s soccer is getting more attention than ever in the United States, thanks in part to star player Megan Rapinoe. Niki referred to Lindsay Parks Pieper and Tate Royer’s Washington Post article about the fight for pay equity waged by women’s soccer players, and to Lindsay Krasnoff’s comparison, also in the Washington Post, to the history of women’s soccer in France. Natalia recommended philosopher Alison Reiheld’s essay “Megan Rapinoe and Joy in the Bodies We Have” at the blog of the International Journal of Feminist Approaches to Bioethics. Political upstart Ross Perot died this month. Neil referred to articles like this that reevaluate Perot in the context of Trump. New York financier and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein is once again under scrutiny for his predation on young girls. Niki and Neil referred to this Atlantic article about the corruption of the world Epstein inhabits. Niki referred to the “Believed” podcast about sexual predator Larry Nasser. Neil commented on journalist Vicky Ward’s Vanity Fair article about Epstein and Natalia recommended Miami Herald journalist Julie K. Brown’s coverage of the case.   In our regular closing feature, What’s Making History: Natalia recommended Adam Harris’ Atlantic article, “Many College Students Are Too Poor to Eat.” Neil shared Ruth Graham’s Slate article, “I Did Not Die. I Did Not Go to Heaven.” Niki discussed Sarah Jaffe’s Slate article, “Judge Judy’s Lifetime Achievement is Teaching Us to Laugh at the Less Fortunate” along with Josh Levin’s book, The Queen: The Forgotten Life Behind an American Myth and Mac Schneider’s Vox article, “The Truth Behind the TV Show COPS.”

Highlights April 1918 Preview Roundtable - Dr. Edward Lengel & Katherine Akey | @ 02:50 Spring Offensive on Easter - Mike Shuster | @ 14:50 War in The Sky - Pilots and PTSD - Mark Wilkins | @ 18:30 Basketball in WWI - Dr. Lindsay Krasnoff | @ 27:05 100 Cities / 100 Memorials - Round#2 awardees announced | @ 32:50 Speaking WWI - “over the top” | @ 36:05 WWI War Tech - The Paris Guns | @ 37:15 Dispatch 4/3/18 highlights | @ 39:20 Centennial Social Media - Katherine Akey | @ 41:00----more---- Opening Welcome to World War 1 centennial News - episode #66 - It’s about WW1  THEN - what was happening 100 years ago this week - and it’s about WW1 NOW - news and updates about the centennial and the commemoration. Today is April 6th, 2018. 101 years ago on April 6th 1917,  the United States declares war on Germany which starts us on a path that will change our nation, our people our industry, and our position in the world forever. [clip from April 6th Event] On this one year anniversary: Dr. Edward Lengel, Katherine Akey and I sit down for our April 1918 preview roundtable Mike Shuster, from the great war project blog updates us on the German Spring Offensive Mark Wilkins introduces us to WW1 pilots and PTSD Dr. Lindsay Krasnoff tells us about basketball in WW1 Katherine Akey brings a story from the WW1 commemoration in social media Plus a lot more... on WW1 Centennial News -- a weekly podcast brought to you by the U.S. World War I Centennial Commission, the Pritzker Military Museum and Library and the Starr foundation. I’m Theo Mayer - the Chief Technologist for the Commission and your host. Welcome to the show. [MUSIC] Preface Several months ago during a podcast editorial planning session for an upcoming month, it occurred to us that our planning roundtable might be something our audience would enjoy listening to… We tried it - you liked it - and now we do it! So here is the conversation Dr. Ed lengel, Katherine Akey and I had earlier this week… The question on the table was: “so what are the big stories and themes in April 1918…  in the War the Changed the World? [MUSIC TRANSITION] World War One THEN Preview Roundtable: April 1918 Dr. Edward Lengel, Katherine Akey, Theo Mayer [Closing Sting] Great War Project Next, we are going to go to Mike Shuster former NPR correspondent and curator for the Great War project Blog…. Mike: Your post is a perfect introduction to the month of April as you dive right into the situation on the ground… for Easter Sunday, April 2nd 1918. What was happening on the front?   [MIKE POST]   Mike Shuster from the Great War Project blog. LINK: http://greatwarproject.org/2018/04/01/german-offensive-stalls/ [SOUND EFFECT] War in the Sky PTSD and Flying in ww1 This week for the War in the Sky -- we’re turning inwards with a look at the psychological challenges for those “daring and do” warriors in the sky during World War 1. Joining us is Mark Wilkins, historian, writer, museum professional, and lecturer. Mark is the author of the recently published article in the Smithsonian’s Air and Space magazine called “The Dark Side of Glory: An early glimpse of PTSD in the letters of World War I aces.” Welcome, Mark! [greetings] [Mark -- To start with - how did you get the trove of letters you used for your research?] [How many letters did you go through to start your research?] [OK.. In WWI malady was equated with physical issues, but your article deals with the psychological stresses of the pilot’s experience. Just a year prior they were executing trench soldier with shell shock on charges of cowardice. How did that play out for the pilots?] [Look - the stress for these aces makes a lot of sense… To be an Ace you need to fly a lot of missions. The mortality rate of your buddies is off the charts… and unlike foot soldiers - you don’t have the courage of the guys on your left and right to bolster you.. This is a white knuckle, cold sweat, daily solo experience… sounds like traumatic stress is inevitable.. How common was this?] [What did the men - and what did the command do about this? ] [So after immersing yourself in this aspect of the war in the sky - what is your biggest take away?] [We just had a great question come in from our live audience - Frank Krone wants to know: Did Richthoven - Germany’s Red Baron appear to suffer from PTSD] [You have an upcoming book -- tell us about it -- When is it coming out?] [Before we wrap up - last December we had filmmaker Darroch Greer on the show about his upcoming The Lafayette Escadrille documentary. Was is your involvement with the project?] [thanks/goodbyes] Mark Wilkins is a historian, writer, museum professional, and historical aeronautics expert. You can read his article in the Air Space Magazine, and learn more about his work from the links in the podcast notes. Link:https://www.airspacemag.com/military-aviation/world-war-i-pilot-ptsd-180967710/#0VKtyZX7JLXCy3JU.01 http://thelafayetteescadrille.org/ http://www.worldwar1centennial.org/index.php/communicate/press-media/wwi-centennial-news/4084-four-questions-for-mark-wilkins.html The Great War Channel For videos about WWI 100 years ago this week, check out our friends at  the Great War Channel on Youtube. New episodes this week include: German Armoured Cars in WW1 The Neutral Ally - Norway in WW1 See their videos by searching for “the great war” on youtube or following the link in the podcast notes! Link:https://www.youtube.com/user/TheGreatWar World War One NOW Alright  - It is time to fast forward into the present with WW1 Centennial News NOW - [SOUND EFFECT] This part of the podcast focuses on NOW and how we are commemorating the centennial of WWI! Remembering Veterans Re-enactment For  Remembering Veterans -- a small village hosts a big event this weekend! The Midway Village Museum is a 137 acre living history park located near Rockford, Illinois. This weekend, the Victorian village will host the 6th annual Great War event, featuring over 225 re-enactors portraying soldiers and civilians from the United States and Europe. Visitors will have the opportunity to enter encampments, tour a reproduction 150 yard trench system, and watch large-scale narrated battle reenactments. It is the nation’s largest public World War One reenactment -- and we’ll get to speak with some of the event’s organizers right here on the podcast in a couple of weeks to hear how it went. For now, especially if you are in the region - visit the link in the podcast notes for a full list of scheduled events at Midway Village Museum near rockford Illinois . Link: http://www.midwayvillage.com/ Basketball in WW1 Also this week for remembering veterans -- something I did not know much about --- from the world of sports a century ago. Now, I’ve got clear images in my mind of baseball in the era - I also see leather helmets and pig skin warrior on the football grid-iron -- but today we’re going to be looking at another great American institution that - as it turns out - that made a big splash in France during the WWI -- basketball! To tell us about it, we’re joined by Dr. Lindsay Sarah Krasnoff, a historian, sports writer, consultant, and author. Her website says: Historical Insights COMMUNICATING GLOBALLY -- Sports - Diplomacy & Storytelling Lindsay! Sounds like you fit right in here. Welcome to the podcast! [greetings] [Lindsay For our non-basketball experts - Like me - could you start us off with a brief history of basketball? When did it first develop, and how widespread was the sport in America circa 1918?] [Did the Americans bring hoops to France or were they already playing?] [If Doughboys and the YMCA helped reignite French interest in basketball, was it only in France that this occurred?] [You’re working on a new book about basketball in France -- how popular is the sport there now?] [goodbyes] Dr. Lindsay Sarah Krasnoff is a historian, sports writer, consultant, and author of several books. Learn more about her and her writing by following the links in the podcast notes. Link: https://www.lindsaysarahkrasnoff.com/ https://rowman.com/ISBN/9780739175095/The-Making-of-Les-Bleus-Sport-in-France-1958-2010# https://twitter.com/lempika7 100 Cities 100 Memorials Update on Round 2 For 100 Cities / 100 Memorials - Today on the anniversary of America’s declaration of war in 1917, the final 50 awardees have been announced. Here is a section from the press release: CHICAGO, IL, April 5 – On the eve of the 101st  Anniversary of the United States entering World War 1, the U.S. World War I Centennial Commission and the Pritzker Military Museum and Library announced today the final 50 WW1 Memorials to be awarded grants and honored with the official national designation as "WW1 Centennial Memorials". All 100 memorials, in all 100 cities have now been designated including such national landmarks as: Chicago’s "Soldier Field", LA’s "Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum", San Francisco’s “War Memorial Veterans Building and Opera House”, Honolulu’s "Natatorium" and Washington, D.C.’s “National World War I Memorial at Pershing Park”. In addition, many smaller local community projects are being recognized such as: Scranton Pennsylvania’s “Col. Frank Duffy Memorial Bridge and Park”, Cape May, New Jersey’s "Soldier and Sailors Monument", Ocean Springs, Mississippi’s "Emile Ladnier WWI Memorial," and North Carolina's NC State University “Memorial Belltower”, to name just a few. The newly-designated memorials are in 37 different states and each will receive a $2,000 matching grant, towards the restoration, conservation and maintenance of these local historical treasures. Here is John Schwan the Interim President and CEO of the Pritzker Military Museum and Library from the livestream announcement. [insert clip] THEO: So this has been a nearly two year effort to get the 100 memorials designated… But this is not the end of the program - for example, we are going to continue to profile the project on the podcast, we are going to accelerate our Memorial Hunters program to identify and create a national register of WWI memorials around the nation. We are going to continue to encourage and support communities around the country to commemorate their local WWI heroes through their memorials that are all over America - many hidden in plain sight! As Dan Dayton, Executive Director of the U.S. World War One Centennial Commission noted in the press release: "I am impressed by the community involvement that has sprung from this project. By focusing on restoring these community treasures, local cities, veterans groups, historical society and citizens have come together to remember the community’s heritage - and that was really a key goal of the program." See a searchable listing of all 100 cities and memorials at ww1cc.org/100Memorials or follow the link in the podcast notes. Link:www.ww1cc.org/100Memorials [SOUND EFFECT] Speaking WW1 Here is our weekly feature “Speaking World War 1” - Where we explore the words & phrases that are rooted in the war  --- When you encounter something that is exaggerated, major, melodramatic, big, HUGE -- ahhh maybe too much!? --  we sometimes describe it as being “over the top”. Which is our Speaking WW1 phrase this week. During WWI, as the soldiers sat in the muddy trenches in anxious anticipation…  preparing to take the offensive… that dramatic moment when the whistles blew - and the men climbed up and over the berms of the trench, rushing out into no-man’s land facing the enemy, shells, gas and machine gun fire, well that was known as… you guessed it - “going over the top”. At the time it was a literal, physical description of what you did - but - appropriately remains in our lexicon today as something seriously radical. “Over the top” - something you might toss off lightly about someone or something - but a phrase with a very heavy history - and this week’s phrase for speaking WW1. Links:https://www.thoughtco.com/going-over-the-top-2361017 [SOUND EFFECT] WW1 War Tech Paris Gun This week for WW1 War Tech -- we turn our attention back to late March and early April of 1918. Paris is under attack as behemoth canon shells -- some weighing as much as 230 pounds fall on the city, killing dozens, creating panic and initially confusing city officials. Where were the guns? The Paris Guns as they came to be known, were sitting 80 miles away, and were responsible. This German supergun was not meant for the battlefield. It was specifically designed to terrorize and demoralize civilian populations. It was so massive that it could only be moved around by rail.. It was created by extending a 380 mm naval gun barrel to a length of 112 feet. that and 550 Lbs of gunpowder gave the beasts their extreme firing range. Ed Lengel mentioned that en route to their target,  the shells literally arced into earth’s stratosphere 24 miles up -- up there, there is almost no atmospheric drag - again increasing the range. The weapon began its assault on Paris late March in 1918, continuing periodically for over three months, until early August. The panic and fear that spread after the initial attacks was short lived and the terror weapon never proved to be much of a threat to French strategy or the population’s morale. Nevertheless, the Paris Guns proved to be a domestic propaganda hit in Germany, as the ability to strike the French capital directly did much to stem the public’s anxiety over the course of the war. The Paris Gun -- It was an engineering marvel -- and it was a terror weapon aimed at Parisians one hundred years ago-- and it is the subject of this week’s WW1 War Tech. Learn more, and see images of the mobile monsters, at the links in the notes. Link: https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1918/03/24/121603152.pdf https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1918/03/30/102683655.pdf https://www.britannica.com/technology/Paris-Gun https://encyclopedia.1914-1918-online.net/article/paris_guns https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/paris-hit-by-shells-from-new-german-gun Articles and Posts For Articles and posts -- We are going to try something new this week. Many of the new posts are featured in our weekly Dispatch Newsletter… so we are going to give you the highlights from the Dispatch as an overview. [DING] A feature in Politico outlines how president Trump’s parade this year, which looks like it is going to fall on or near Veteran’s Day may have special WW1 meaning. It’s an interesting article and an interesting read. [DING] News about Sgt Stubby -- a follow up on the film’s recent premiere, a street fair honoring the pup in his hometown of Hartford, Connecticut, and a new Sgt Stubby statue planned in Middleton, Connecticut. [DING] Test yourself on your WW1 knowledge by taking a quiz from the National Archives, [DING] Check out a new illustrated battlefield travel guide. [DING] Read a bittersweet story about easter in 1918, [DING] A new exhibition highlights Anglo-American relations during the war -- on view in Bath, England. [DING] Doughboy MIA features Private Edwin C. Kitterman of New Middletown, Indiana [DING] and this week’s featured Story of Service is that of Private Wayne Minor, an Illinois native who was killed in action just three hours before armistice. Sign up for the Weekly Dispatch newsletter at ww1cc.org/subscribe check the archive at ww1cc.org/dispatch or follow the link in the podcast notes.   Link: http://www.worldwar1centennial.org/index.php/communicate/2015-12-28-18-26-00/subscribe.html http://www.ww1cc.org/dispatch The Buzz And that brings us to the buzz - the centennial of WW1 this week in social media with Katherine Akey - Katherine, what did you pick? New Jersey Ordinance Hi Theo -- A really interesting article popped up on Facebook this week about ordnance from WW1 that continues to surface and pose a threat -- but not in Europe, right here on the east coast of the United States! Listeners may be familiar with the Zone Rouge -- a 460 square mile area of France centered around Verdun that has been determined to be too physically and environmentally damaged for human habitation as a direct result of the Great War. There is even an entire department in France, the Département du Déminage or department of de-mining, that has been tasked with safely disposing of ordinance from the world wars. Since its establishment in 1946, more than 630 members of that force have been killed in the line of duty. We have no such force here in the US -- so when seven rifle grenades from WW1 were discovered recently on the coast of New Jersey, explosives experts had to be called in to safely dispose of the munitions. So, how did these grenades end up in New Jersey? It turns out, disposing of unneeded munitions by dumping them into the sea was a commonplace practice -- as recently as 1970. As a result, there are an estimated millions of tons of potentially explosive ordinance on the seafloor -- and every once in a while, some makes its way onto shore. Read more about the Zone Rouge and the intermittent discovery of World War weapons on American shores by visiting the links in the podcast notes. That’s it for this week in the Buzz. Link:https://www.popularmechanics.com/military/weapons/a19641774/a-century-after-wwi-the-weapons-of-old-wars-keep-turning-up-on-beaches/ https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2015/08/13/the-bombs-beneath-us-unexploded-ordnance-linger-long-after-wars-are-over/?utm_term=.924447a3268d https://www.nationalgeographic.org/news/red-zone/   Outro And that is the first week of April for WW1 Centennial News. Thank you for listening. We also want to thank our guests... Dr. Edward Lengel, Military historian and author Mike Shuster, Curator for the great war project blog Mark Wilkins, historian, writer, museum professional, and lecturer Dr. Lindsay Krasnoff, historian, sports writer, consultant, and author Katherine Akey, the commission’s social media director and line producer for the podcast A shout out to our intern John Morreale for his  great research assistance. And I am Theo Mayer - your host. The US World War One Centennial Commission was created by Congress to honor, commemorate and educate about WW1. Our programs are to-- inspire a national conversation and awareness about WW1; Including this podcast! We are bringing the lessons of the 100 years ago into today's classrooms; We are helping to restore WW1 memorials in communities of all sizes across our country; and of course we are building America’s National WW1 Memorial in Washington DC. We want to thank commission’s founding sponsor the Pritzker Military Museum and Library as well as the Starr foundation for their support. The podcast can be found on our website at ww1cc.org/cn   Or search WW1 Centennial News on  iTunes, Google Play, TuneIn, Podbean, Stitcher - Radio on Demand, Spotify or using your smart speaker.. Just say “Play W W One Centennial News Podcast”. Our twitter and instagram handles are both @ww1cc and we are on facebook @ww1centennial. Thank you for joining us. And don’t forget to share the stories you are hearing here today about the war that changed the world! [music] You know ginormous canon that was shooting at Paris - well - man - that was really over the top! [Big boom] So long!

Dr. Lindsay Sarah Krasnoff is an international sports writer, historian, and consultant, working at the intersections of sports, international affairs, and global communications. The author of The Making of Les Bleus: Sport in France, 1958-2010, her work on how identity, immigration, race, gender, and diplomacy play into our world today appears in CNN International, Sports Illustrated, Roads & Kingdoms, The New Yorker, The New York Times, Review France Forum, Vice Sport, and more. The Making of Les Bleus traces the Fifth Republic’s quest to create elite athletes in two global team sports, football and basketball, primarily at the youth level. While the objective of this mission was to improve performances at international competitions, such programs were quickly seized upon to help ease domestic issues and tensions. The post The Making of Les Bleus – Ep 25 with Lindsay Krasnoff appeared first on Read Learn Live Podcast.

In the 1950s, anxiety about the decline of France's empire and "great power" status was expressed through concern about its poor athletic performance at international competitions. Lindsay Krasnoff, author of The Making of Les Bleus: Sport in France, 1958-2010, describes how France attempted to catch up on the Cold War playing field. Episode notes: http://digitalarchive.wilsoncenter.org/resource/sport-in-the-cold-war/episode-10-france-s-sport-crisis

Did you catch the French national team’s triumph in its first match against Honduras at the 2014 World Cup in Brazil? Well I did and it was fantastic. I was particularly excited knowing that the next morning, I was scheduled to interview Lindsay Krasnoff about her new book, The Making of Les Bleus: Sport in France, 1958-2010 (Lexington Books, 2012). An illuminating account of  French sport since 1958, the book links the histories of football (soccer) and basketball to some of the major issues of the postwar period: the baby boom, the development of a consumer culture and new media, the Cold War, and decolonization. Moving from the “sports crisis” that preoccupied French policy makers in the wake of France’s poor showing at the 1960 Rome Olympics through the decades that led to the 1998 World Cup and subsequent victories, The Making of Les Bleus is a history of sport and politics that examines the interplay of the two on the national and international stages. Covering a period of over fifty years, the book considers sports as a primary means by which the French state sought to obtain and expand its own “soft power” in the world arena through the encouragement of national sports programs and culture. Krasnoff has drawn on an impressive range of archival material, as well as numerous interviews that provide readers with a unique perspective on recent years for which much of the written record remains off-limits to researchers. Concluding with a discussion of the most recent “sports crisis” in France (the national football team has suffered some serious losses in the last several years), Krasnoff’s study places more recent events in French sports culture in the context of a nation struggling with competing definitions of Frenchness. And I didn’t miss the chance to ask this expert for her thoughts on France’s odds this World Cup round. We are both optimistic… *Note: The views that Lindsay expresses in the interview are hers alone and do not represent those of her employer, the U.S. Department of State, or the U.S. Government. Information presented here is based on publicly available, declassified sources and oral history interviews. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In 1967, an official of the French basketball federation lamented the team’s poor finish at that year’s European Championships in Finland. The French team finished sixth in their group of eight, and then lost in the first game of the knockout stage. The official noted that Europe’s top teams, such as the first-place Soviet Union, all had players over two meters tall (6’6″). The official summed up the disparity: “The giant [basketball player] is like an atomic armament.  If a nation does not possess one, it is an unbalanced struggle.”  The core of the complaint was simple: If France was to stand tall in the Cold War world, then it had to stand tall in the sports arena. Historian Lindsay Krasnoff looks at this sports crisis in postwar France and the French government’s attempts to remedy it in her book The Making of Les Bleus: Sport in France, 1958-2010 (Lexington, 2012). Lindsay frames her study in two episodes of international athletic failure: the 1960 Rome Olympics, at which France won no gold medals and finished below Romania, Bulgaria, and Turkey in the overall table, and the implosion of the national team at the 2010 World Cup in South Africa. Looking at the decades in between, Lindsay shows how leaders of the Fifth Republic, beginning with President Charles de Gaulle, sought to build a sporting culture, particularly through the training of young athletes. There have been successes. While officials once lamented the limits of French basketball talent, there are now more players from France on NBA rosters than from any other nation outside North America. But the rebellion on the practice pitch in South Africa was a reminder that the work of turning France into a consistent sporting power has been uneven. And the reactions of French officials, starting with President Sarkozy, show that this project remains one of national importance. Note: the views that Lindsay expresses in the interview are hers alone and do not represent those of her employer, the U.S. Department of State, or the U.S. Government. Information presented here is based on publicly available, declassified sources and oral history interviews. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In 1967, an official of the French basketball federation lamented the team’s poor finish at that year’s European Championships in Finland. The French team finished sixth in their group of eight, and then lost in the first game of the knockout stage. The official noted that Europe’s top teams, such as the first-place Soviet Union, all had players over two meters tall (6’6″). The official summed up the disparity: “The giant [basketball player] is like an atomic armament.  If a nation does not possess one, it is an unbalanced struggle.”  The core of the complaint was simple: If France was to stand tall in the Cold War world, then it had to stand tall in the sports arena. Historian Lindsay Krasnoff looks at this sports crisis in postwar France and the French government’s attempts to remedy it in her book The Making of Les Bleus: Sport in France, 1958-2010 (Lexington, 2012). Lindsay frames her study in two episodes of international athletic failure: the 1960 Rome Olympics, at which France won no gold medals and finished below Romania, Bulgaria, and Turkey in the overall table, and the implosion of the national team at the 2010 World Cup in South Africa. Looking at the decades in between, Lindsay shows how leaders of the Fifth Republic, beginning with President Charles de Gaulle, sought to build a sporting culture, particularly through the training of young athletes. There have been successes. While officials once lamented the limits of French basketball talent, there are now more players from France on NBA rosters than from any other nation outside North America. But the rebellion on the practice pitch in South Africa was a reminder that the work of turning France into a consistent sporting power has been uneven. And the reactions of French officials, starting with President Sarkozy, show that this project remains one of national importance. Note: the views that Lindsay expresses in the interview are hers alone and do not represent those of her employer, the U.S. Department of State, or the U.S. Government. Information presented here is based on publicly available, declassified sources and oral history interviews. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In 1967, an official of the French basketball federation lamented the team’s poor finish at that year’s European Championships in Finland. The French team finished sixth in their group of eight, and then lost in the first game of the knockout stage. The official noted that Europe’s top teams, such as the first-place Soviet Union, all had players over two meters tall (6’6″). The official summed up the disparity: “The giant [basketball player] is like an atomic armament.  If a nation does not possess one, it is an unbalanced struggle.”  The core of the complaint was simple: If France was to stand tall in the Cold War world, then it had to stand tall in the sports arena. Historian Lindsay Krasnoff looks at this sports crisis in postwar France and the French government’s attempts to remedy it in her book The Making of Les Bleus: Sport in France, 1958-2010 (Lexington, 2012). Lindsay frames her study in two episodes of international athletic failure: the 1960 Rome Olympics, at which France won no gold medals and finished below Romania, Bulgaria, and Turkey in the overall table, and the implosion of the national team at the 2010 World Cup in South Africa. Looking at the decades in between, Lindsay shows how leaders of the Fifth Republic, beginning with President Charles de Gaulle, sought to build a sporting culture, particularly through the training of young athletes. There have been successes. While officials once lamented the limits of French basketball talent, there are now more players from France on NBA rosters than from any other nation outside North America. But the rebellion on the practice pitch in South Africa was a reminder that the work of turning France into a consistent sporting power has been uneven. And the reactions of French officials, starting with President Sarkozy, show that this project remains one of national importance. Note: the views that Lindsay expresses in the interview are hers alone and do not represent those of her employer, the U.S. Department of State, or the U.S. Government. Information presented here is based on publicly available, declassified sources and oral history interviews. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In 1967, an official of the French basketball federation lamented the team’s poor finish at that year’s European Championships in Finland. The French team finished sixth in their group of eight, and then lost in the first game of the knockout stage. The official noted that Europe’s top teams, such as the first-place Soviet Union, all had players over two meters tall (6’6″). The official summed up the disparity: “The giant [basketball player] is like an atomic armament.  If a nation does not possess one, it is an unbalanced struggle.”  The core of the complaint was simple: If France was to stand tall in the Cold War world, then it had to stand tall in the sports arena. Historian Lindsay Krasnoff looks at this sports crisis in postwar France and the French government’s attempts to remedy it in her book The Making of Les Bleus: Sport in France, 1958-2010 (Lexington, 2012). Lindsay frames her study in two episodes of international athletic failure: the 1960 Rome Olympics, at which France won no gold medals and finished below Romania, Bulgaria, and Turkey in the overall table, and the implosion of the national team at the 2010 World Cup in South Africa. Looking at the decades in between, Lindsay shows how leaders of the Fifth Republic, beginning with President Charles de Gaulle, sought to build a sporting culture, particularly through the training of young athletes. There have been successes. While officials once lamented the limits of French basketball talent, there are now more players from France on NBA rosters than from any other nation outside North America. But the rebellion on the practice pitch in South Africa was a reminder that the work of turning France into a consistent sporting power has been uneven. And the reactions of French officials, starting with President Sarkozy, show that this project remains one of national importance. Note: the views that Lindsay expresses in the interview are hers alone and do not represent those of her employer, the U.S. Department of State, or the U.S. Government. Information presented here is based on publicly available, declassified sources and oral history interviews. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In 1967, an official of the French basketball federation lamented the team’s poor finish at that year’s European Championships in Finland. The French team finished sixth in their group of eight, and then lost in the first game of the knockout stage. The official noted that Europe’s top teams, such... Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices