The GOAT: Serena

Listen to "I Am Kobe" Nov 16, 2021

Introducing a new podcast from Diversion Podcasts & iHeartRadio. What if we could go back in time, before he became the icon, and ask him: how did you become Kobe Bryant? “I Am Kobe” tells the story of Kobe Bryant’s early life through his coaches, his family, his friends. With never-before-heard intimate tapes of Kobe himself. His thoughts, his dreams, his goals from his teenage years, revealed for the first time. Listen to “I Am Kobe” for free on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, and all the places you get podcasts. Listen to his voice. Cover photo © Eileen Blass – USA TODAY NETWORK

The Making of The GOAT: Serena Nov 04, 2021

In the season finale, we go behind the scenes of the making of The GOAT: Serena podcast. Hosts Zina Garrison and Chanda Rubin are joined by the show’s writer, veteran tennis journalist Pete Bodo, to discuss how the podcast came together, their perspectives on Serena Williams, the secret question they asked every guest, and much more. Special guests include Monica Seles, Andy Roddick, Rennae Stubbs, Isha Price, Pam Shriver, Rick Macci, Mary Jo Fernandez, and Mackie Shilstone.

Wife. Mother. GOAT. Oct 28, 2021

This episode explores Serena Williams, the wife, mother and GOAT. Hosts Chanda Rubin and Zina Garrison discuss how Serena has juggled all these things and still manages to operate at the highest level in professional tennis. They are also joined by Serena’s longtime agent, Jill Smoller, who provides rare, candid insight into Serena’s mindset and the determination and drive that has allowed her to still be the undisputed GOAT at the age of 40.

Slamorama Oct 21, 2021

In this special episode, hosts Chanda Rubin and Zina Garrison break from the typical format and share their thoughts on the two most magical words in tennis - Grand Slams. They discuss Serena Williams’ most memorable Grand Slam wins, detail what it’s like to face her on the court, and the highs and lows of some of Serena’s biggest matches, including her first major win at the 1999 US Open, the 2017 Australian Open, won while 8 weeks pregnant, and her crushing loss to Roberta Vinci at the 2015 US Open. Mary Carillo and Patrick Mouratoglou also provide some insight on the inner-thoughts of Serena Williams.

Best Matches, Top Rivals Oct 14, 2021

In this episode, hosts Chanda Rubin and Zina Garrison discuss some of Serena Williams’ career highlights, including her best matches and her top rivals. Guests include a who's who of tennis royalty: Patrick Mouratoglou, Andy Roddick, Mary Carillo, Rick Macci, Mary Joe Fernandez, Rosie Casals, Benny Sims and broadcaster Robin Roberts. The conversation consists of in-depth analysis and breaking down some of Serena’s biggest matches against her sister Venus, Martina Hingis, Jennifer Capriati and Maria Sharapova over her more than 20 year career.

The Holy Grail of Longevity Part 2 Oct 07, 2021

Former tennis pros Pam Shriver and Rennae Stubbs, both still in the game as broadcasters, join hosts Chanda Rubin and Zina Garrison to explore the qualities that have enabled Serena Williams to withstand the stress of life at the top and the mental strength that’s kept her there for more than two decades. They also discuss mental health in sports in general and high profile athletes who’ve struggled, at times, with mental health in the public eye, such as tennis pros Naomi Osaka and Mardy Fish, along with Olympic gymnast Simone Biles. This is episode 2 of a 2-episode arc.

The Holy Grail of Longevity Part 1 Sep 30, 2021

Special guests Martina Navratilova, 18-time Grand Slam champion and tennis Hall-of-Famer, along with Mackie Shilstone, fitness trainer to Serena Williams, Peyton Manning, Roy Jones Jr. and many other professional athletes, join hosts Chanda Rubin and Zina Garrison to dive into the details on the longevity of Serena’s career. They discuss how Serena has remained in shape and relevant for over two decades, and detail some previously unheard stories about Serena’s strength and determination, as well as some priceless personal anecdotes. This is episode 1 of a 2-episode arc.

The Controversy Gene Sep 23, 2021

Special guests Patrick Mouratoglou, Serena Williams’ coach since 2012, and Mary Carillo, award-winning tennis and Olympic Games TV correspondent, join hosts Chanda Rubin and Zina Garrison to examine the role of stress, conflict, and controversy in Serena’s career. From the amusing ones, like Serena’s denim skirt at the 2004 US Open and her infamous “biker boots” leg warmers, to the painful and difficult ones, like the 2018 US Open final between Serena and Naomi Osaka, and the others that sparked painful conversations around race, gender, and the fundamentals of fair play. Together these isolated incidents have helped shape Serena in the public eye.

Celebrity, Inc. Sep 16, 2021

This week’s special guests Common, Oscar and Grammy Award winning rapper, writer, actor, and activist, and Andy Roddick, former world No. 1 tennis player, join hosts Chanda Rubin and Zina Garrison for a deep dive into the dazzling world Serena Williams occupies as one of the world’s most recognizable celebrities. We also hear from Serena’s sister, Isha Price, to talk about Serena as a brand, beyond the tennis court, and why it was important for her to create a life for herself outside of sports.

Carrying the Torch for Change Sep 09, 2021

The path of tennis for Black players has been a long one filled with daunting obstacles and immense triumphs. Before Serena Williams, it was paved by Hall of Famers Althea Gibson and Arthur Ashe along with our own Zina Garrison and Chanda Rubin, among others. Serena, the greatest tennis player of all time and an icon in her own right, has inspired many people of color within and beyond the sport. Hosts Zina Garrison and Chanda Rubin along with Katrina Adams, former professional tennis player and the first African-American president, chairman, and CEO of the United States Tennis Association and Robin Roberts, the host of Good Morning America and a former athlete herself, explore how Serena forced the culture at large to re-examine its assumptions about race and other issues surrounding women, sports, culture and society.

Winning Big Sep 02, 2021

Serena Williams has won 23 Grand Slam singles titles, making her the most decorated singles tennis player of the Open era. The question is, what exactly makes an all-time Grand Slam singles champion? Starting with Serena’s first Grand Slam win at the US Open in 1999, hosts Zina Garrison and Chanda Rubin track her path to becoming the greatest of all time with stories and insight from tennis hall of famer and icon Billie Jean King and renowned tennis coach Kamau Murray. In this episode, you’ll learn that winning big isn’t just about having talent on the court, but it’s much more. It’s a full time job that requires the right attitude, passion, and strategy - all of which Serena possesses.

Sisterhood Aug 26, 2021

No GOAT has achieved exceptional levels of success on their own. In the case of Serena Williams, besides her one-of-a-kind talent, discipline, and ambition, she had the power of sisterhood to support her through the ups and downs of her tennis career and personal life. Hosts Chanda Rubin and Zina Garrison take an in-depth look at Serena and Venus Williams’ unwavering relationship, their mother Oracene’s influence, and the overall importance of Serena surrounding herself with supportive women. Conversations include Serena’s older sister and business manager Isha Price and tennis champions Monica Seles and Andy Roddick, who had front-row views on Serena’s formative years.

The Courts of Compton Aug 26, 2021

Before she was The Greatest of All Time, Serena Williams was the younger half of a tennis sister duo from Compton, California with raw talent and the promise of greatness. Hidden away from the world by their father Richard Williams, Serena and Venus Williams were shrouded in mystery. Only a select few had exclusive access to their training process, one of which was the renowned American tennis coach Rick Macci. In this episode, hosts and tennis legends Chanda Rubin and Zina Garrison speak with Macci who reveals never-before-heard training stories from Serena’s childhood.

Introducing Season 2: The GOAT: Serena Aug 17, 2021

The GOAT: Serena is the second season in The GOAT series. This season looks at the remarkable career of one of the greatest of all time – tennis superstar Serena Williams.

S1 Seven is So Sweet Feb 12, 2021

Tom Brady just can't stop winning Super Bowls. On this last episode of the season we hear from Tom Brady, Tom Brady Sr., Tampa Bay Buccaneers head coach Bruce Arians, and Phil Simms of CBS. In his first year with the Bucs, Brady not only led them to the playoffs for the first time since 2007, but won three playoff games to get them back home to be the first team to ever play the Super Bowl on their home field. And in this unique and crazy season, of course Brady didn't stop by just getting to 10th Super Bowl, he won the Super Bowl for the seventh time. That's more than any franchise has won. By the way, he also won his fifth Super Bowl MVP. He also was the clear winner in round one in his divorce from Bill Belichick.

S1 Bonus: Supe For Seven Super Bowls Feb 01, 2021

Tom Brady will be playing in his 10th Super Bowl for his 7th Super Bowl championship when the Tampa Bay Buccaneers play the Kansas City Chiefs in Super Bowl LV on their home field in Tampa this Sunday. Host Gary Myers talks to Tom Brady about how hard it is to win the Super Bowl at a time when he was stuck on three victories for ten years. Brady predicted then nobody would win six or seven. He's wrong on six. And he's trying to serve Supe For Seven.

S1 Bonus: Tom Brady's Home Cooked Super Bowl Jan 27, 2021

Tom Brady has made it to his 10th Super Bowl, an almost unimaginable number. But this one is different. Brady came without the New England Patriots. Brady and the Tampa Bay Bucs will meet the explosive Kansas City Chiefs and Patrick Mahomes on February 7 in Super Bowl LV. The Bucs are the first team to make it to the Super Bowl on their home field. Host Gary Myers interviews Tom Brady's father, Tom Brady Sr., about his son's transition to a new team after 20 years with the Pats, his break-up with Bill Belichick, and how much longer Brady will play. Tom has told his dad he will play "until I suck." Boston Globe sports columnist Dan Shaughnessy also appears on the episode and contributes his insight on how Patriots Nation is handling Tom Brady in the Super Bowl this year without them.

S1 Bonus: Will Tom Brady Take the Lambeau Leap? Jan 21, 2021

Tom Brady vs. Aaron Rodgers at Lambeau Field in the NFC Championship Game. It just doesn’t get any better than that. It’s a match-up for the ages — and for the aged. Brady is trying to get to his 10th Super Bowl (!) in his first season with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. As great as Aaron Rodgers has been this season, he’s only been to one Super Bowl. Who takes The Lambeau Leap to Super Bowl LV? Renowned sports broadcasters Al Michaels and Peter King stop by The GOAT to offer their perspective on the matchup.

S1 Bonus: Tom Brady Takes The Long Way Home Jan 06, 2021

Tom Brady is heading to Washington on Saturday night with the hopes of going on a Super Bowl run with his new team, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The Bucs play the Washington Football Team in the NFC Wild Card matchup. Brady threw 40 touchdown passes and the Bucs finished 11-5 after ending the regular season with four straight victories. Tom and his team are red-hot. Brady already has been to more Super Bowls (9) and won more Super Bowls (6) than any player in history. Now he's trying to join old pal Peyton Manning as the only quarterbacks to win it all with two different teams. Another milestone: He has never been to the Super Bowl without a first round bye. Is this the first of three straight road playoff victories before he gets to play Super Bowl back home in Tampa or is this where Tom Brady's magical season ends?

S1 Bonus: Brady vs. Belichick 2020 Dec 22, 2020

Tom Brady wins Round 1 in the NFL’s most celebrated divorce. He’s on the verge of going to the playoffs with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and the New England Patriots will miss the postseason for the first time since 2008. For this season, Bill Belichick misses Brady a lot more than Brady misses Belichick... even though the Bucs would be much better than 9-5 if Belichick was coaching them instead of Bruce Arians. But what about The Patriots Dynasty? Is Brady really The GOAT? Or was it Belichick? Or did they need each other? NFL superstar analysts Phil Simms and Cris Collinsworth stop by the pod to break it down.

S1 Play It Again, Tom: Brady's Big Risk on The Tampa Bay Buccaneers Dec 13, 2020

Sequels rarely equal the originals. It’s true with movies and especially true with quarterbacks. What about Tom Brady on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers after 20 years pn the New England Patriots? He's trying to rewrite the script of Joe Namath, Johnny Unitas, and his hero, Joe Montana. Second acts haven’t always been pretty in the NFL, but Tom Brady is intent on changing the narrative by holding up his seventh Lombardi Trophy. Is 43 the new 33?

S1 Bonus: Can Tom Brady Still Run The Table in 2020? Dec 08, 2020

In this special bonus episode we take a break from the history and look at what's going on with Tom Brady and the Tampa Bay Bucaneers in real time. Does The GOAT have one more magical run in him at the age of 43? The first 12 games of the 2020 NFL season has brought us an odd couple in Bruce Arians and Tom Brady. But down the stretch the Tampa Bay Buccaneers come in the 2020 season with a 7-5 record and slightly damaged but still realistic Super Bowl hopes. To get back home to play the Super Bowl in Tampa, the Bucs will have to play three playoff games on the road. First, they must finish off the season strong and make it to the postseason. That depends on improved chemistry between Brady, who likes to control games with a short passing game, and Arians, who believes in the high-wire act of throwing down the field. Do they need marriage counseling? We take a real-time look, including commentaty from guests and Hall of Fame coaches, Jimmy Johnson and Bill Cowher.

S1 Perks and Pranks Dec 06, 2020

Jim Nantz of CBS Sports tells the story of the time he and Tom Brady played golf with former Presidents George H.W. Bush and Bill Clinton in Kennebunkport, Maine. It’s just one of the perks of being The GOAT. Here’s another perk: Tom Brady is a world class locker room practical joker and as his backup quarterback on the New England Patriots, Matt Cassel, discovered, never mess with anybody who makes more money than you.

S1 The Deflategate Diaries Nov 29, 2020

Is Tom Brady a cheater? Two weeks after he was accused by the Indianapolis Colts of having air leaked out of their footballs in the 2014 AFC Championship Game, Tom Brady won Super Bowl LI—his fourth Super Bowl victory. Brady was suspended for four games, fined $1 million, and the New England Patriots forfeited two draft picks. There were many legal machinations and appeals involving the NFL, commissioner Roger Goodell, as well as federal and appeals courts. Does Deflategate impact Tom Brady's legacy as The Greatest Quarterback of All Time? Gary Myers pulls back the curtain.

S1 Spygate, The Schmuck, and Near Perfection Nov 22, 2020

In Game 1 of the 2007 season NFL security busted up the New England Patriots' espionage ring—what came to be known as Spygate. Bill Belichick was having his film crew tape the opposing team's defensive signals. The Patriots went on to football's first 16-0 regular season record and it was only one of the greatest underdog performances in NFL history by Eli Manning's New York Giants in Super Bowl XLII—including the famed Helmet Catch by David Tyree—that stopped Tom Brady and the Patriots from cementing the title of Greatest Team Ever. Was Brady and the New England Patriots dynasty tainted?
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S1 Porterhouse or New York Strip? Nov 15, 2020

The rivalry between Tom Brady of the New England Patriots and Peyton Manning of the Indianapolis Colts (and then the Denver Broncos) was so intense that it carried over to games played between Brady and Peyton’s little brother Eli Manning—and not just in the Super Bowl. Peyton once asked the New York Giants defense, through Eli, to prevent Tom Brady from breaking his single season TD record. In return, if the mission was accomplished, the Giants defense requested Peyton pick up the check at an expensive Manhattan steakhouse. Porterhouse or New York strip?
🗣 Send us your comments on the show on Twitter at @DiversionPods
▶️ Diversion brings real stories to life: DiversionPodcasts.com
Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

S1 Tom Brady vs. Peyton Manning Nov 08, 2020

Tom Brady was a draft day afterthought as the 199th overall pick when he went to the New England Patriots in 2000. Peyton Manning was born into NFL royalty, destined to be the #1 overall pick and greatness on the Indianapolis Colts and then the Denver Broncos. This unlikely pairing of Tom Brady and Peyton Manning produced the greatest rivalry in NFL football history, and one that many feel shaped the modern NFL in many ways.

S1 We Are All Patriots Nov 01, 2020

The streets of New Orleans in the week leading up to the St. Louis Rams-New England Patriots Super Bowl XXXVI were red, white, and blue. It was about five months after the terrorist attacks of September 11th, 2001. It was the most patriotic Super Bowl ever, so maybe it was appropriate the Patriots won.

S1 Saving Coach Belichick Oct 26, 2020

Tom Brady saved Bill Belichick's job. Bill Belichick was 5-11 in his first season as the coach of the New England Patriots. Belichick was 0-2 in his second season when Drew Bledsoe was injured so badly that both his football career and his life was on the line. Belichick knew he was on a short leash—or thin ice—and could be fired at the end of the season.

S1 Tom Brady Takes The Torch Oct 19, 2020

In game 2 of Tom Brady’s second season with the New England Patriots, starting quarterback Drew Bledsoe suffered internal bleeding after a hit and almost died. The next man up was Brady.

S1 Tom Brady’s Draft Day Blues Oct 12, 2020

Tom Brady became mentally tough at Michigan. He felt slighted from the day he arrived to the final game of his college career. He was even benched during an overtime victory against Alabama while throwing for 369 yards and four touchdowns.

S1 The Michigan Man Oct 05, 2020

Tom Brady has a complicated history with the University of Michigan. He was estranged from the school he loves for more than a decade after graduation. Why?

S1 The Making of a GOAT Oct 05, 2020

In the twenty seasons Tom Brady, Bill Belichick, and Robert Kraft were together, The New England Patriots went to nine Super Bowls and won six. How did "The Big Three" come together?

S1 Introducing The G.O.A.T: Tom Brady Sep 28, 2020

The G.O.A.T. Season 1 looks back at the exceptional career of the great—or the greatest—Tom Brady.

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