In 16 seasons as a major league shortstop, Ozzie Guillen established himself as a slick-fielding, fundamentally sound ballplayer, who was embraced by teammates, fans and the media in Chicago and Atlanta. Since assuming the field manager's job with the Chicago White Sox in 2003, his visibility has grown dramatically - and so has his reputation as one of the game's most outspoken, politically incorrect personalities. Beloved by his players and Sox management, Guillen guided the lightly regarded White Sox to the 2005 World Series championship, stunning the baseball establishment with unpredictable moves in a game steeped in the tradition of "playing by the book." Real Sports visits the 42-year-old native of Venezuela to find out what makes him tick on and off the field, and learn how he motivates today's ballplayer, who may earn ten times the salary of the manager.
Professional athletes are thought to possess enough mental strength to block out every distraction. However, former major league baseball players Steve Sax and Mackey Sasser know first-hand how the mind can prevent the body from performing certain tasks. While playing second base for the LA Dodgers, Sax went through a period when he couldn't complete the throw to first base. Similarly, while catching for the Mets, Sasser was unable to toss the ball back to the pitcher and had to retire. These days, sports psychologists, also known as "head doctors," are helping athletes overcome their demons and head off new problems, since controlling the mental aspect of the game can make all the difference. Real Sports correspondent Bernard Goldberg talks to athletes who have been affected and to doctors who believe they have the answer.
With the countdown to the Winter Olympics underway, Real Sports looks back at the story of Bill Johnson, the United States' first downhill skiing gold medalist. In 1984, he arrived at the Sarajevo Games a brazen 23-year-old without much of a track record, but with enough ability to carry him down the mountain in record time. Instead of emerging from the Olympics an American hero, however, Johnson acquired a bad image to go with his gold medal. Many were put off by the cocky prediction that he would win the gold, finding it unbecoming in a sport that values respect and etiquette. And unfortunately for Johnson, the next 20 years proved more challenging than any set of downhill gates, as he suffered the death of a child, the deterioration of his marriage, and one of the sport's most horrific skiing accidents. Correspondent Frank Deford visits with Johnson to hear about the highs and lows of this downhill champion.
During a month celebrating the achievements of African-Americans, Real Sports revisits its Emmy®-winning 1996 piece commemorating the NCAA championship of the Texas Western University Miners. The basketball team was the first with an all-black starting five to capture the NCAA title, defeating the all-white University of Kentucky squad coached by Adolph Rupp. Winning a national championship is a great achievement for any college program, but the significance of Texas Western's victory was magnified by the country's civil unrest. Forty years later, the game still represents a turning point in American history, while the current feature film "Glory Road," which dramatizes the school's triumph, has returned the story to the limelight.
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