Pinstripes with Sarah Thomas, NFL Official
On this episode of The Adrenaline Zone, hosts James “Sandy” Winnefeld and Sandra Magnus are joined by Sarah Thomas, an NFL official who became the first woman to officiate in a Super Bowl. She shares her story of breaking the gender barrier in a male-dominated industry, and the many risks that entailed.
Like many officials, Sarah was herself an athlete. She began playing softball and basketball when she was very young, and even went to college on a basketball scholarship. Upon graduation, she began playing basketball in a recreational men’s basketball league but was subsequently expelled from the league for being a woman.
It was the first time Sarah had stopped playing sports in over 20 years. In search of something to fill her athletics-shaped hole, she accompanied her brother to a local football officials’ meeting one evening. That meeting would set her on a path that would lead her all the way to the Super Bowl.
Sarah’s journey was not without hardship. Being the first woman in her field, Sarah had made herself vulnerable and endured plenty of uncomfortable situations on her way to going where no woman had gone before.
Moving towards this glass ceiling was risky, but Sarah shattered it with all the confidence in the world.
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This episode is sponsored by ZOA Energy.
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