The PowHERful Podcast with AJ McCord

Ever heard of skijoring?? We hadn’t either until two Colorado State students explained the sport that began out of practicality and has grown into an entire experience in mountain towns across the west. Marley and Megan, plus their trusty steed, Apollo, explain how they got into a sport that involves being towed over jumps behind a horse, the most shocking thing about being young women in this male-dominated space, and their ...

Zen may not be the first thing that comes to mind when you think of the sport of skeleton but it’s exactly what Mystique Ro embodies as she tries to make her first Olympic team. As one of 11 children, quiet is not something she often had growing up and it’s something she runs to on the ice track now. In this episode of The PowHERful Podcast she shares how her introduction to the sport was far from conventional, and how ...

In this episode of The PowHERful podcast AJ sits down with Olympic Great British free skier Zoe Atkin. The Stanford junior is at the top of the ski world as the 2024/2025 Crystal Globe winner but in this episode gets vulnerable about her relationship with fear and how sometimes it paralyzes her at the top but of the pipe. But through her studies, her experience, and her own drive to be the best in her process - she shares how she o...

Jaelin Kauf spends most of her time at the top of the podium these days. The 2022 Olympic silver medalist mogul skier is making history this season, securing both the overall and dual moguls Crystal Globe, becoming the first American to win a globe since 2015. But as tries to lock in her spot on a 3rd US Olympic Team, the Alta, Wyoming native shares the moments she's learning to appreciate the most, and they're not the ones she spe...

There is no better person to continue our special coverage of Women’s History Month than a woman who has made history for Team USA. Alana Nichols broke her back at 17, leaving her paralyzed from the waist down. But the same audacious bravery that caused her to try the backflip that landed her in a wheelchair, propelled her to becoming the first American female to ever win gold medals at both a summer and winter Paralympics. A...

Welcome back PowHERful Pod Squad! After a brief hiatus we are back with one of the most badass moms around; Canada’s Cassie Sharpe! The 2x Olympic medalist recently made history by becoming the first mom to ever win an X Games Gold Medal in Ski SuperPipe. At 32 years old, Cassie is redefining what it looks like to be a mom AND an extreme athlete. In this episode she shares advice for those of us who are child-hesitant, how be...

Big wave surfer Felicity Palmateer joins The PowHERful Podcast to talk waves: the massive ones she's riding in the water and the ones she's making out of it as she and host AJ McCord share their experiences as women trying to make it traditionally male-dominated fields. This episode gives you an inside look into their life as friends and co-commentators on the World Surf League's Championship Tour, and how Palmateer is setting an e...

In this episode The PowHERful podcast we meet Deedra Irwin, a member of USA Biathlon who is working to bring home the very first medal for the US in the sport. It’s the only winter sport America has not brought home a medal in but Irwin took a big step towards the goal in her first Olympics in 2022, finishing 7th in the 15km individual race - the highest place an American had ever earned in the race in an international compet...

Ever heard of skimo? It's ok if you haven't but you should and there's no one better to introduce us to the brand new Winter Olympic Sport than Gwen Rudy. A member of the USA National team and a licensed acupuncturist, Gwen takes us through what it will take for America to get a Skimo spot in the 2026 Olympics, how to manage pursuing an Olympic gold while keeping her business afloat in a small, Colorado mountain town and, enjoy the...

Welcome back to The PowHERful Podcast! As the temps drop in nearly every corner of the country, we find the women who are thriving in some of the harshest conditions Mother Nature can dish out, starting season 2 with 3x Paralympic gold medalist - Brenna Huckaby! In this episode, Brenna explains how a girl from Baton Rouge, Louisiana found her love for snowboarding through cancer. Brenna shares what she's learned on her hardest days...

Allysa Seely made history in 2016 when she become the first woman to win gold in para-triathlon. In Paris she goes for a third straight as an Olympic veteran and fierce advocate for equality. Seely had to request hundreds of pages of her own medical documents to get an accurate diagnosis for herself at just 18 years old; the doctor who finally listened to her told said she’d saved her life with just months to spare. Her story is fi...

Sarah Adam is ready to make history with Team USA's Paralympic Wheelchair Rugby team. Wheelchair Rugby is a co-ed sport but Adam is the first women to make the American roster. She shares how she went from able-bodied volunteer to a cornerstone of the team after being diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. Just over a few weeks away from the Paralympics, Adam's takes us inside the sport nicknamed 'Murderball' and how she's hoping her b...

Kennedy Blades had to take down a legend in Olympic wrestling to punch her ticket to her first Olympics. Growing up in combat sports, and often wrestling against boys - she was more than up for the challenge. Completing in the 76-kilogram class of Olympic wrestling, Blades talks her Olympic debut, and how she sees combining fashion and sport in her future.

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Special thanks to our sponsor, The Sports Bra, the first women's sport...

Amanda Golini didn't step onto a field hockey field until high school, but she was a natural. She further excelled in the sport at Lafayette College before joining Team USA. AJ and Amanda discuss her path from the softball field to being named USA's Field Hockey captain, the disappointment of not qualifying for the 2021 Olympics, and how she and the team pulled together to earn their spot in Paris.

To watch the full interview, chec...

Maddie Musselman has been a cornerstone for the USA Women’s Water Polo team for more than a decade, playing an integral role in helping them bring home gold in 2016 and 2020. Now, as Team USA tries to enter unprecedented territory by becoming the first water polo team from any country, either men or women, to win four straight gold medals, Musselman has found herself in a personal battle unlike any she’s ever faced. Balancing prepa...

Alev Kelter's unique road to USA Rugby is a testament to her hard work and resilience. The former NCAA soccer and ice hockey standout shares fun and pivotal moments of her sport-fueled childhood in Alaska, her unlikely path to USA Rugby, and her journey with self-acceptance.

To watch the full interview, check out our YouTube (@ThePowHERful)!

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Special thanks to our sponsor, The Sports Bra, the first women's sports bar in the co...

Evy Leibfarth was practically born in the river. The child of two whitewater guides, the 20-year old is set to make her second Olympics appearance in Paris and make history. She will become the first woman in her sport to compete in three events; canoe, kayak and kayak cross, the last of which is a brand new sport to the Olympics. In this episode of The PowHERful Podcast, Evy takes us inside her training schedule, how she’s learned...