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As the England men’s cricket team prepare to face Afghanistan in the Champions Trophy - despite pressure from MPs to boycott the game in protest over the Taliban's treatment of women - Firooza Amiri from the Afghanistan women's cricket team reveals the details of her daring escape, playing cricket in exile and the hypocrisy of the women's national side not being recognised by the ICC. International cricket journalist, Alison Mitchell, from the BBC's Test Match Special and Stumped podcast, joins us to tell the story she's been following since the start. Plus, details of the latest chapter in the European referees crisis, after Slovenian referee Slavko Vincic became the first foreign referee to take charge of a Turkish top-flight game (between Galatasaray and Jose Mourinho's Fenerbahce) following several controversies in Turkish football over the past 18 months.Executive Producer: Adonis PratsidesProducer: Sophie PenneyVideo Producers: Sam TrudgillSocial Media Editor: Calum ScotlandTom Hughes is Editor for The News Agents podcast networkVicky Etchells is the Commissioning Editor for GlobalYou can listen to this episode on Alexa - just say "Alexa, ask Global Player to play The Sports Agents".The Sports Agents have merch! You can buy yours now here!

A special bonus episode for an interview that blew us away. Cindy Ngamba was the first refugee to win an Olympic medal and is about to make her professional boxing debut on the undercard of the Natasha Jonas v Lauren Price fight.Cindy joined Gabby and Mark to share her incredible story of arriving in Bolton from Cameroon aged 11 with no mother to tell her about deodorant and periods, to the trauma of a shock arrest, and the heartbreak of having her UK citizenship application repeatedly rejected, even though she can't return to Cameroon because she's openly gay. You'll feel her energy when she describes the moment she discovered boxing, going through almost three years of fitness drills before she was allowed to spar. That journey took her all the way to the Paris Olympics, where she couldn't compete with Team GB despite training with them. With an Olympic bronze medal now in her cabinet, she tells us about what it's been like turning pro and being on the historic all-female card at the Royal Albert Hall for her professional debut.Executive Producer: Adonis PratsidesProducer: Sophie PenneyVideo Producers: Sam TrudgillSocial Media Editor: Calum ScotlandTom Hughes is Editor for The News Agents podcast networkVicky Etchells is the Commissioning Editor for GlobalYou can listen to this episode on Alexa - just say "Alexa, ask Global Player to play The Sports Agents".The Sports Agents have merch! You can buy yours now here!

This week on The Sports Agents...Mark and Gabby hit the road this week, meeting Formula One drivers at the O2 Arena and travelling to Wigan to chat to the best and possibly most underrated coach in Britain. First up, an exclusive interview with three-time Grand Prix winner George Russell about taking over from Lewis Hamilton as Mercedes lead driver, swearing rules and the moment you know if your car will be good enough to win a world championship (it's sooner than you think!). (02:45) Mark also caught up with young British rookie Oliver Bearman, who was three when Hamilton won first world championship. He made a dramatic debut last season: drafted in with two hours notice he finished 7th ahead of Hamilton and Lando Norris, becoming the youngest British F1 driver in the process. So in his first full season can he replicate that success? He didn't in his driving test... (10:45)And we meet Wigan Warriors Head Coach, Matt Peet, whose recent trophy cabinet is rivalled only by the likes of Pep Guardiola with seven in three years. So how did the life-long Wigan fan, who never played professional rugby league, guide his side to a historic quadruple and the Team of the Year award at Sports Personality of the Year? Might have something to do with the philosophy he reads... (15:30)Got a question for The Sports Agents - email us at thesportsagents@global.com New episodes every Tuesday and Thursday.

Despite Man City's Champions League humiliation, only one other head coach in British sport can claim to have enjoyed the kind of trophy-laden success that Pep Guardiola has in recent years - Wigan Warriors Head Coach, Matt Peet. Mark takes Gabby north, to The Brick Community Stadium - home of the all-conquering Wigan Warriors - for an exclusive interview with the man who's won seven trophies in three years. The life-long Wigan fan, who never played professional rugby league, has the sport in a chokehold following last season's historic quadruple but how does he intend to keep them there? How has he used philosophy and religion to shape the team's unique culture? And is he as miserable as he looks when they win?Plus Mark and Gabby react to Man City's Champions League exit and more. Executive Producer: Adonis PratsidesProducer: Sophie PenneyVideo Producers: Sam TrudgillSocial Media Editor: Calum ScotlandTom Hughes is Editor for The News Agents podcast networkVicky Etchells is the Commissioning Editor for GlobalYou can listen to this episode on Alexa - just say "Alexa, ask Global Player to play The Sports Agents".The Sports Agents have merch! You can buy yours now here!

Mark is at the O2 Arena in London for the Formula One season launch, chatting to British drivers George Russell and Oliver Bearman, as they step out of Lewis Hamilton's shadow and look to become the next British driver to win a world championship. Three-time Grand Prix winner Russell talks to us about taking over from Hamilton as lead driver at Mercedes, what he makes of the new rules that could ban drivers for swearing and how much he values rivalries in F1, after his big beef with four-time world champion Max Verstappen last season. (06:00)Teenage rookie Ollie Bearman, who was three when Hamilton won his first world championship, is about to start his first full F1 season with Haas. Last year he became the youngest Briton ever to race in F1 and the youngest person ever to score points on their debut. This season can he build on that dramatic debut where he subbed in for Ferrari with two hours notice and finished 7th ahead of Hamilton? (19:36)Plus, BBC F1 Presenter Jennie Gow gives us the lowdown on the biggest stories ahead of the new season.You can listen again to our exclusive interview with McLaren driver Lando Norris here! Executive Producer: Adonis PratsidesProducer: Sophie PenneyVideo Producers: Sam TrudgillSocial Media Editor: Calum ScotlandTom Hughes is Editor for The News Agents podcast networkVicky Etchells is the Commissioning Editor for GlobalYou can listen to this episode on Alexa - just say "Alexa, ask Global Player to play The Sports Agents".The Sports Agents have merch! You can buy yours now here!

This week on The Sports Agents...Can the Six Nations learn from the star-studded Super Bowl? We chat to ex-England rugby union player Ugo Monye (03:30). Could rugby league help the Premier League get VAR right? That's with Phil Bentham, Head of Match Officials at the RFL and former PGMOL VAR coach (10:45).Joe McEwan tells us about suffering a sudden cardiac arrest when playing lacrosse. At just 22 his heart stopped for 4 minutes but he survived and now he's raising money by walking the length of New Zealand (16:45).And we laugh about Andy Murray's fateful first ski trip, where he had to be transported down the mountain after biting off more than he could chew (22:45).Find out more about Cardiac Risk in the Young hereGot a question for The Sports Agents - email us at thesportsagents@global.com New episodes every Tuesday and Thursday.

After a fiery final Goodison derby where refereeing was in the spotlight once again and as the Super League season begins, Gabby and Kelly are joined by Phil Bentham, Head of Match Officials at the Rugby Football League and former Premier League VAR coach. Will the new Captain's Challenge help rugby league and should football try it? And what else can VAR in football learn from other sports? (07:47)Plus we chat to Joe McEwan who suffered a sudden cardiac arrest while playing lacrosse. The 22-year-old's heart stopped for 4 minutes but he survived thanks to the people around him. He joins us from New Zealand where he's about to complete a 3,000km walk to raise money for heart screenings. (33:20)You can donate to Joe's fundraiser for Cardiac Risk in the Young here! Executive Producer: Adonis PratsidesProducer: Sophie PenneyVideo Producers: Sam TrudgillSocial Media Editor: Calum ScotlandTom Hughes is Editor for The News Agents podcast networkVicky Etchells is the Commissioning Editor for GlobalYou can listen to this episode on Alexa - just say "Alexa, ask Global Player to play The Sports Agents".The Sports Agents have merch! You can buy yours now here!

After a Super Bowl where Taylor Swift being booed and Kendrick Lamar's half-time show were spoken about more than the Eagles stopping the Chiefs, Kelly Cates joins Gabby to chat about what lessons other sports, like rugby's Six Nations, can draw from this entertainment factor. We talk about all that, and have a Six Nations debrief after a dramatic weekend, with ex-England rugby player, Ugo Monye (12.00).And we react to Liverpool's shock FA Cup exit at the hands of Plymouth Argyle (01.30). Executive Producer: Adonis PratsidesProducer: Sophie PenneyVideo Producers: Sam TrudgillSocial Media Editor: Calum ScotlandTom Hughes is Editor for The News Agents podcast networkVicky Etchells is the Commissioning Editor for GlobalYou can listen to this episode on Alexa - just say "Alexa, ask Global Player to play The Sports Agents".The Sports Agents have merch! You can buy yours now here!