Fresh off titles at the U.S. Classic and an NCAA podium finish with Florida, world champion Skye Blakely shares her journey navigating identity, prejudice, and community in elite gymnastics.
Sports
Local and national sports reporting and commentary by the state’s leading African American sportswriters, including award-winning columnists Charles Hallman and Dr. Mitchell Palmer McDonald, with a special emphasis on the local prep scene and disparities in sports administration and media coverage.
Posted inThe Prep Scene
Lynx are at the top of WNBA
The Minnesota Lynx enter the All-Star break with a league-best 20-6 record and three All-Stars. Sports columnist Dr. Mitchell Palmer McDonald breaks down the numbers behind their hot start.
Posted inLynx/WNBA
WNBA All-Star game in Chi-town
The WNBA becomes the first U.S. pro sports league to host events at the Obama Presidential Center as All-Star Weekend returns to Chicago. Sports columnist Charles Hallman and broadcaster Cindy Brunson break down a surprising first half of the season.
Posted inOdds and Ends
Renee Brown’s WNBA legacy runs deeper than she’ll admit
Renee Brown helped build the WNBA from day one but rarely gets credit for it. At the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame ceremony, sports columnist Charles Hallman caught up with her, and with founding president Val Ackerman, on the league’s 30-year legacy.
Posted inTwins/MLB
Black players carry the Twins system into the All-Star break
From an injured Futures Game selection to a Twins pitcher’s back-to-back strikeout gems, sports columnist Charles Hallman rounds up four storylines from Black baseball players in and around the Twins organization.
Posted inAnother View
Don’t erase the Black players who built the W
Caitlin Clark isn’t the WNBA’s savior, and Black players built the league over three decades, says sports scholar Dr. F. Michelle Richardson. Sports columnist Charles Hallman also has an update from Timberwolves Summer League in Vegas.
Posted inThe Prep Scene
Former prep stars making their mark
From an NBA Summer League roster spot to a new MSHSL leadership role, sports columnist Dr. Mitchell Palmer McDonald rounds up five Twin Cities prep standouts making moves.
Posted inBlack College Sports Report
Big changes ahead for HBCU hoops
From an expanded NCAA tournament to a growing HBCUAC, sports columnist Charles Hallman rounds up five points shaping the future of Black college athletics.
Posted inWNBA
Racial divide in the WNBA runs wider than the Grand Canyon
The Alyssa Thomas-Caitlin Clark incident reignited racial divisions in the WNBA, with Thomas and her family receiving death threats afterward. Sports columnist Charles Hallman talks with scholars about what’s really driving the divide.
Posted inOdds and Ends
Parker, Reeve reflect on Lynx-Sparks rivalry for the age
Ten years after the Lynx-Sparks rivalry reshaped the WNBA playoff format, Candace Parker and Cheryl Reeve looked back at Knoxville on the two Finals series that stacked their rosters with future Hall of Famers. Sports columnist Charles Hallman has their reflections.
Posted inThe Prep Scene
Five making their mark
Five former Twin Cities prep stars are now leading the next generation, moving from standout players to head coaches and community leaders across Minnesota high school sports. Sports columnist Dr. Mitchell Palmer McDonald has the roundup.
Posted inThe Prep Scene
North Connections: Past and Present
From a Hall of Fame coach to two NFL players giving back, sports columnist Dr. Mitchell Palmer McDonald rounds up five of the strongest athletic connections tied to Minneapolis North.
Posted inOdds and Ends
Lynx practice player learns from the best
Minneapolis native Joshua Brown spent his first season as a Minnesota Lynx practice player, going up against Napheesa Collier and Kayla McBride, and came away a believer in the women’s game. Charles Hallman has his story.
Posted inAnother View
Parker, Delle Donne, Reeve headline WBHOF Class of 2026
Candace Parker, Cheryl Reeve and the late Barbara Kennedy-Dixon headlined the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame Class of 2026. Sports columnist Charles Hallman reports from Knoxville on the induction weekend’s most moving moments.
Posted inCoaching while Black
Eight teams, one Juneteenth
Eight Twin Cities high school boys’ basketball teams gathered at Hoop Habits in Eden Prairie for a Juneteenth showcase of unity and competition, and all eight programs share one thing in common: every head coach is Black.
Posted inSports
14-Year-Old East St. Paul Boxer Wins Junior Olympics Gold
Natalia Young, a 14-year-old boxer from East St. Paul’s Sir Boxing Club, won gold at the 2026 USA Boxing Junior Olympics despite entering with only two fights to her name against opponents with 20 to 30 fights of experience.
Posted inAnother View
Cost of college sports, follow the money
In the second of his two-part series on the cost of college sports, Charles Hallman follows the money from the SAFE Act’s Senate floor advance to Big Ten media distributions, NCAA revenue sharing and the stark financial gap between Power Four schools and HBCUs.
Posted inSports
Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame – They got it right
MSR sports columnist Charles Hallman profiles Tonya Chavers, the first Black female girls’ high school basketball head coach at Minneapolis North and a Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame Trailblazer, as she prepares to attend the 2026 WBHOF induction ceremony featuring Candace Parker, Elena Delle Donne and Lynx Coach Cheryl Reeve.
Posted inSports
Back where he belongs: Ve Shawn “Magic” Owens’ road back to the ring
Minneapolis boxer Ve Shawn “Magic” Owens is making his comeback on June 27 at Battle on the Waterfront in St. Paul after an eye injury forced him away from the sport, driven by faith, family and a hunger for a world title that never dimmed.
Posted inThe Prep Scene
North graduates return to host free camp
Three North High School alumni now in the NFL, Omar Brown, Bobby Jamison-Travis and Tyler Johnson, returned to Minneapolis on Juneteenth to host a free Sports Performance Camp for local youth, with plans to make it an annual tradition.