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Coming to the end of this Series and our portion of 'The Long Road Up', we have guests who can share, not only perceptions of the journey thus far, but most importantly the way forward. Their perspectives focus on progress and obstacles in the racially diverse USA and giving an overview of the 'super continent' of our planet: Africa. Gabarone Botswana is the 2018 site of the next meeting of the global women's sport advocacy community at the World Congress of the International Working Group of Women in Sport. You will want to know more and make plans to attend.

A famous USA men's coach is quoted as responding to a question about sport psychology on his team by pointing at his flexed bicep muscle and saying 'this is the only sport psychology I need'. It has taken a long time for coaches, and indeed the world, to overcome such negative biases and embrace the realization that psychological factors are crucially important to both performance and enhanced quality of life. Our guests today are recognized experts in the preparation of coaches to contribute to participant welfare across all age and skill categories.

An earlier program dealt with the inclusion challenges of persons with deafness and those with mobility issues within sport, Today's program will also focus on inclusion and human rights in sport but with other variations of inclusion challenges. We will speak with three individuals who are utilizing policy innovation and activism to enhance progress for members of LGBTQ communities and people with diverse disabilities and human rights in sport globally.

In each of our previous programs, it has repeatedly been emphasized that more resources are necessary in order for women's sport to advance. This truth holds at the individual, family, community, national, and global levels. Our guests today have knowledge, skills, experiences with the identification and development of resources in a variety of contexts. Their insights and contributions today promise to be helpful to all of us who care about, and are working for, women's sport advances.

Multi national research has shown repeatedly that women's sport receives somewhere between 2 and 10 percent of media's attention span. The figures vary marginally when considering print compared to electronic media: what major sport events are taking 'center stage' and the like. What little coverage there is undoubtedly influences public perceptions regarding women in sport-physical activity engagement. Our guests on this program are renowned experts on the status, past and future concerning media and women's sport in the USA and globally. They will address what might be done to improve the media attention status.

This show is real time captioned, Click the banner above to get the captions live! In all the 'Long Road Up' programs, guests have always spoken of the importance of accessibility and participation of ALL girls and women. Our guests today are leaders among that segment of girls and women often overlooked and underserved; the differently-abled. Two of our guests, Dr. Becky Clark and Tiffany Williams are multi-medalists in Deafympics and other international championships for the Deaf. Dr. Andrea Woodson-Smith likewise a gold medalist; in ParaPan Games and multi-year champion in international wheelchair basketball competition. These women were barely getting going with their outstanding athleticism and have 'set the disabled sport world afire' as coaches, international consultants, and in advocacy and leadership roles after leaving the most intense aspects of their athletic careers. We will hear their amazing and inspiring stories and feel their irrepressible spirit in our program.

Many, indeed all, guests on this Series have braved the step into virtually 'all male' domains. I am not sure there could be any more daunting than 'the garage' at the Indianapolis 500 Motor Speedway. As recounted in her book Lyn St James: An Incredible Journey Lyn describes how she first had to don her driving suit in the public Ladies Restroom at Indy. She says she had only one rule 'no signing autographs in there'. Lyn went on to qualify for the 500 seven times; once qualifying with a four lap speed above 225 MPH. Our guest today made Indy 500, Le Mans, Watkins Glen, the White House (among scores of other iconic locations) HER TERRITORY. Welcome Lyn St James to The Long Road Up.

Girls and women in sport have been shown to receive lower levels of community and media support and attention compared to their brothers even in communities already disadvantaged. With females particularly at-risk of being left behind, there is a 'rescue' source in many communities being ignored; Kinesiology Departments in local colleges. Kinesiology, and particularly sport psychology professionals, have a unique set of skills and knowledge to contribute to youth development at individual and community levels. Dr. Leeja Carter, Long Island University, has created a multi-pronged development engine advancing girls and women's health, sport and empowerment in the region. This program showcases Dr. Carter and two other outstanding leaders in the Performance Excellence in Applied Kinesiology (PEAK)) Program at LIU: Poet and advocate Samiyra Osbourne Olympian, WSF President Angela Hucles

Research studies in the USA, and globally, have consistently shown that women's sport and women athletes receive around 5% of media coverage of all types. This means if a female athlete wishes to remain in sport as a career, she is going to need serious, savvy, and dedicated support and guidance. Our guest today has made her own career out of providing just such attention and service; founder and CEO of Yolanda L. Jackson & Associates Inc. Yolanda (Yo) Jackson. Additionally, Yolanda is also recently selected for the Board of Directors of USA Synchronized Swimming.

There is a perception, widely supported by the sport leadership hierarchy, that women have (or are approaching) equitable treatment. Facts belie this notion and our guests are exemplars of women still fighting to even make it 'to the starting line' in the long road up. The events in women's canoe and women's road race cycling are either blocked from inclusion in the Olympic program or severely limited as compared to their male counterparts and as might be expected due to their numbers in other competitive activities. Today we hear about their strategic and gallant efforts to promote change.

The program spotlights the Kathrine Switzer life story; the woman who entered and finished the Boston marathon (by her initials only and long hair tucked under a hat), who finished that race even after a race organizer tried to literally knock her off the course, the woman who organized marathons for women internationally drawing thousands of participants and eventually convincing the IOC in 1984 to open a marathon event to women, and tells the exciting story of her life...Still being written strong as she has founded a new non-profit 261-Fearless in order to use running as a vehicle to empower women. Join Kathrine as she tells of her plans also to 'run Boston' again in 2017 on the 50th anniversary of her historic run.

Dr. Jaime Schultz and Dr. Maureen (Mo) Smith are two of the most noted sport historians in the United States. They each have published scholarly works from a perspective which is broad and inclusive of a variety of cultural factors impacting on girls and women's sport experiences including gender, race, injury, film and media portrayals across the past 50 years. Speaking with accessible voices, they will aid us to find our 'starting line' for the Road Up.

Program will offer vivid description of the world of women's sport in the USA in the 1980s (just as effects of Title IX) were ripples on the ocean. Deborah Larkin (WSF CEO) and Dr. Marj Snyder (Research and Program Consultant for WSF) will offer details about what WSF was seeking to bring about in the early years and how this is the same and different from today's efforts.