Sports diplomacy is nothing new - back in 776 BC in ancient Greece, there was an "Olympic Truce" to ensure there'd be no battles or conflicts during the games. In the 2800 years since, we've seen all kinds of scenarios where sports and societies mix, often for a greater good. Sarah Talalay, a former sports business journalist in the United States, has been working as a Cultural Affairs Officer in US Embassies around the world. Her position often involves sports diplomacy, which she calls "one of the best ways to demonstrate soft power." Now in her fourth posting overseas, after Chennai, India; Vilnius, Lithuania; Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia and currently Tashkent, Uzbekistan, Sarah has overseen such diverse programs as NBA and NFL watch parties in Vilnius with Lithuanian NBA Hall-of-Famer Sarunas Marciulionis, a baseball clinic with Barry Larkin, and bringing J.R. Reid to Malaysia. She talks candidly about everything young female athletes face in predominantly-Muslim Uzbekistan, about its increasingly progressive government, and the best food she's enjoyed in all her stops. The goal? - for all of us to be strangers no more.
