We hear from New Zealand and Brighton defender Rebekah Stott in the week she started chemotherapy for Stage 3 Hodgkin's Lymphoma. Stott tells us she’s undergone IVF treatment to give her the option of having children in the future, given the severity of the treatment she’s facing. She tells us about having learned of her diagnosis while in hotel quarantine in Australia and discusses her plans to take control of the situation by shaving off her hair for charity. Stott is hopeful of playing again for Brighton in January and reveals her aim to play in the 2023 World Cup on home soil.

We look at the rise in violence against Asians and Asian Americans in the United States during the Coronavirus pandemic. Cynthia Choi from the group, Stop Asian American and Pacific Island Hate, and Tim Kawakami from the Athletic join us to discuss the situation. Tim has written a column entitled “The Attacks on Asian Americans are attacks on us all,“ and he explains the significance of basketball star Jeremy Lin speaking out on the issue. Cynthia’s group was formed in 2020 at the height of the pandemic, and they documented almost 4,000 hate crimes against their community in the past 12 months.

American football cornerback Josh Norman joins us to discuss his charitable works and whether he has a future in the NFL. Norman – who played for the Carolina Panthers in Super Bowl 50 – is currently a free agent, having spent last season with the Buffalo Bills. He’s raised over a million dollars to open a youth centre in his hometown in South Carolina. In addition to his work at home, he raised money to support business hit by the covid pandemic in Buffalo and visited camps housing migrant children at a detention centre in Dallas.

The BBC’s Jennie Gow joins us on the opening weekend of the new Formula One season, and former England defender Lindsay Johnson joins us as Manchester United’s women’s team prepare to make club history playing on the hallowed Old Trafford turf for the first time.

Photo: Canberra United and Sydney FC players pose with a banner supporting New Zealand defender Rebekah Stott ahead of her treatment for cancer. (Credit: Getty Images)