International Education Week: Sports

Jess is an Indian girl who dreams of life on a more even playing field; whether it be her beloved game of soccer or an opportunity to experience more than what her parents and culture might be ready to accept.

The film details the inspiring exploits of Michael Edwards, better known as Eddie the Eagle, the most famous ski jumper in British history. The film s portrayal of Edwards never-say-die approach to the sport, celebrates the human spirit and resilience in the face of extraordinary odds and challenges. Taron Egerton, who made his feature film starring debut in Kingsman: The Secret Service, portrays Eddie the Eagle, and Hugh Jackman plays a ski jumping expert from Lake Placid who helps Eddie train for the Calgary Olympics.

In Africa, as in so many other places, sports have traditionally been a man’s world. And until recently, women entered at the risk of being scorned or laughed at. But the amazing Sahar El-Hawary and her female soccer team are no joke. She is the first women’s referee in North Africa and also the first female member of the Egyptian Football Federation. She has put women’s soccer on the map — not just in her native Egypt but also in the entire Arab world.

In this feature documentary, a remarkable group of young Afghan women dream of representing their country as boxers at the 2012 Olympics, embarking on a journey of both personal and political transformation.

In Blackfoot country, they call Indian Relay “North America’s original extreme sport.” Jockeys bareback gallop their horses around a track, jumping off one and on to another in a chaotic melee of horses and handlers at “the exchange”. Accidents happen. Simply finishing a race demands masterful skill and courage. Siksika horseman Allison RedCrow dreams of bringing a team to the “greatest outdoor show on Earth” – the Calgary Stampede – so he and his people can show the world their unparalleled skill on horseback. In this CBC Short Doc, the cameras follow Allison and his new jockey, Cody BigTobacco, over the course of a year as they assemble a team of horses, train them for the relay race and finally make their debut at the Stampede. Through this process, we come to understand and respect the skills of horsemanship, which have been passed down for generations and remain intact. Warning: the final two minutes of this program contain coarse language. Viewer discretion is advised.

From award-winning documentary filmmaker E. Chai Vasarhelyi ("MERU") and world-renowned photographer and mountaineer Jimmy Chin comes National Geographic Documentary Film's FREE SOLO, a stunning, intimate and unflinching portrait of the free soloist climber Alex Honnold, as he prepares to achieve his lifelong dream: climbing the face of the world's most famous rock ... the 3,000ft El Capitan in Yosemite National Park ... without a rope. Celebrated as one of the greatest athletic feats of any kind, Honnold's climb set the ultimate standard: perfection or death. Succeeding in this challenge, Honnold enters his story in the annals of human achievement. FREE SOLO is both an edge-of-your seat thriller and an inspiring portrait of an athlete who exceeded our current understanding of human physical and mental potential. The result is a triumph of the human spirit.

Clare Balding examines the achievements of four of the 20th century's most influential sports stars. Clare will be assessing the legacies of Pele, Muhammad Ali, Billie Jean King and Tanni Grey Thompson. Each of them transcended their sport, and had an impact on the century far beyond their professional record. As the 20th century began, sport largely belonged to those who could afford leisure time, and was often an amateur pursuit. By the year 2000, sport provided some of the most watched moments in human history - often uniting billions. The 20th century also saw records smashed and previously unimaginable sporting feats achieved. Increasingly, the work of our greatest sport stars highlighted urgent social issues. From the democratization of sport to the battle for equal pay, the talents of these icons helped shape the world we know today.

What do you do when 3000 Somalis run over your small town in the back lands of Sweden, and McDonalds starts being called 'Little Mogadishu'? Local journalist and jack of many trades Patrik Andersson has an idea: let sport unite the people. And so guys who have never known temperatures below 20 degrees become the national team for Bandy ice hockey of Somalia. Count on having some fun: they do for sure!

"I feel the spirit of the people and a connection with mother earth in my heart when I run." These are the thoughts of 16-year-old Veronica Charter, a gold medallist at the North American Indigenous Games. Award-winning filmmaker Annie Frazier Henry follows an elite handful of Aboriginal athletes from British Columbia for two years as they make their way to the 2002 North American Indigenous Games in Winnipeg, Manitoba. Here over 6,000 young Native sportsmen and women from across Canada and the United States come to compete. It is an exhilarating journey of achievement, dedication and hardship. Spirit of the Game is a tribute to the ones who are rekindling the fire and glory of sport, for whether they win or lose, they all come home heroes.