The Outlook Podcast Archive - The barefoot tennis player who turned pro

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As a boy growing up in Freetown, Sam Jalloh became enamoured with the Sierra Leone national tracksuit. He wasn't particularly fashion conscious, but he was sporty, and he discovered that the only way he'd get one of those tracksuits was by learning to play tennis. Sam didn't have shoes or equipment, so he played barefoot and fashioned a racquet out of plywood. Local coaches spotted Sam's talent for tennis, but these were perilous times in Sierra Leone. The country was in the middle of a civil war, and before Sam could get his tracksuit, he found himself in the crosshairs of the conflict. Sam's written book called How Tennis Saved My Life.

Presenter: Andile Masuku
Producer: Tom Harding-Assinder

Picture: Sam Jalloh
Credit: Courtesy Sam Jalloh

Published on Monday, 23rd December 2019.

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