The Emmy Award-winning monthly HBO Sports newsmagazine Real Sports returns Tuesday with three new stories and an update.
Among the stories you’ll see will be a look at why Korean golfers thrive on the LPGA Tour, a profile of Olympics hurdler Lolo Jones, another profile on the nephew of legendary boxer Micky Ward and the update will be on a New York City fireman who was a top-notch accident, but after an accident and losing his leg became a top-notch athlete again.
We have the preview of this month’s program from HBO Sports. Check it out.
REAL SPORTS WITH BRYANT GUMBEL
LOOKS AT SOUTH KOREAN DOMINANCE ON THE LPGA TOUR;
GOES ONE-ON-ONE WITH US OLYMPIAN LOLO JONES;
TELLS THE INSPIRING STORY OF RAY GREENHALGE, MICKY WARD’S NEPHEW;
AND RECONNECTS WITH NEW YORK CITY FIREMAN MATT LONG WHEN THE EMMY®-WINNING SHOW RETURNS MAY 22, EXCLUSIVELY ON HBONow in its 18th season, REAL SPORTS WITH BRYANT GUMBEL presents more enterprising features and reporting when its 182nd edition, available in HDTV, debuts TUESDAY, MAY 22 (10:00-11:00 p.m. ET/PT), exclusively on HBO.
Other HBO playdates: May 22 (5:00 a.m.), 25 (1:30 p.m., 8:00 p.m.), 27 (8:00 a.m.), 29 (8:30 a.m., 6:00 p.m.) and 31 (4:00 p.m., 3:45 a.m.), and June 2 (9:30 a.m.) and 6 (11:00 a.m., 12:25 a.m.)
HBO2 playdates: May 24 (7:00 p.m.), 26 (1:40 p.m.), 28 (10:00 p.m.) and 30 (10:00 a.m., 11:00 p.m.), and June 3 (11:30 a.m.), 7 (7:00 p.m., 1:45 a.m.) and 11 (3:30 p.m.)
HBO On Demand availability: May 28-June 18
Segments include:
*Seoul Sisters. Home to 50 million people, tiny, mountainous South Korea has little room for golf courses, but no other country in the world has more women in the upper ranks of pro female golfers. An astounding 145 of the top 500 female golfers in the world are from South Korea, including four of the top ten, while the nation is responsible for 17 of the top 50 LPGA earners in 2012 to date, the most of any country. The path to success on the links can begin early, with some young South Korean women – on the advice of their parents – sacrificing traditional schooling to dedicate more than 40 hours a week to their craft. REAL SPORTS host Bryant Gumbel travels to South Korea to find out how a country roughly the size of Indiana and making up less than one percent of the world’s population has come to dominate a sport.
Producer: Nick Dolin.
*Lolo Jones. Entering the Women’s 100M Hurdles at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, Lori “Lolo” Jones was the favorite to capture gold, but she tripped while attempting to clear the penultimate hurdle, finishing seventh. While this stumble was a huge blow to her career, it was also just another adversity to overcome. Jones’ difficult childhood included stretches of homelessness, thanks to a father who was in and out of prison and a mother who struggled financially. But she went on to win three NCAA titles, earn 11 All-American honors at LSU and capture gold medals at the World Indoor Championship. In this REAL SPORTS/Sports Illustrated collaboration, correspondent Mary Carillo sits down with the 29-year-old to talk about then and now, as she prepares for what could be her last shot at Olympic gold.
Producer: Chapman Downes.
*Ray Greenhalge. When Ray Greenhalge was born seven weeks prematurely, doctors said he would never walk or talk as a result of the debilitating muscle disorder cerebral palsy, as well as severe fluid on the brain. Now, 26 years later, he’s probably more talkative and physically active than most his age – an age many feared he wouldn’t reach. The nephew and godson of retired boxer Micky Ward, best known for his historic trilogy of fights with Arturo Gatti in 2002 and 2003, Greenhalge has a unique passion for boxing, which gives him a sense of direction. He also proves to be every bit as tough as his uncle, with whom he spars ten rounds every Saturday, as well as engaging in two- to three-hour daily gym workouts. REAL SPORTS correspondent Bernard Goldberg travels to Massachusetts to hear Greenhalge’s inspirational story.
Producer: Michael Tolajian.
*Matt Long. On a frigid 2005 winter morning in midtown Manhattan during a transit strike, New York City fireman, marathoner and Ironman triathlete Matt Long was riding his bike to work when a private bus made an illegal turn and literally ran him over. Given a one-percent chance of survival, he spent five months in the hospital and underwent 40 surgeries to repair his crushed right leg and impaled organs. The 46-year-old credits his great physical condition for being able to stave off infection and survive the ordeal. The 9/11 veteran persevered and trained passionately for two years to become a top-notch athlete again. In 2008, Long completed the New York City marathon in just over seven hours, and eight months later completed an Ironman Competition within the 17-hour time limit.
Since the original story aired in 2009, Long has gotten married and expects to become a father in June. He was also involved in another car accident, this time during a charity bike ride in Florida, but escaped with just a broken wrist. While the injury derailed his quest to qualify for this summer’s London Paralympics, REAL SPORTS correspondent Mary Carillo learns that Long is doing better than ever.
Producers: Jake Rosenwasser, Lisa Bennett.
REAL SPORTS has won the Sports Emmy® for Outstanding Sports Journalism 15 times and has received 23 Sports Emmy® Awards overall. It is the only sports program ever honored with the duPont Award for excellence in broadcast journalism, having first been recognized in 2005. In January, REAL SPORTS received its second duPont Award, for a series of investigative reports on concussions, highlighted by the August 2010 story revealing the scientific link between sports concussions and the onset of ALS. Last month, the show received the Emmy® in the category of Outstanding Sports Journalism for Bernard Goldberg’s 2011 report on the college bowl games money trail.
The executive producer of REAL SPORTS WITH BRYANT GUMBEL is Rick Bernstein; Kirby Bradley is senior producer.
That’s all from here.
