Pre-Zero Sports Talk
Pre-Zero Sports Talk is built on real conversations beyond the game. Hosted by Sid Bensalah, with over 30 years of global sports industry experience, the podcast explores sport as a platform for deeper conversations about leadership, faith, performance, purpose, identity, community, and impact. This is not only a podcast about sport. It is about what sport reveals about people, how we lead, how we handle pressure, how we pursue meaning, and how we build lives, teams, and communities with purpose. Through honest, long-form conversations with athletes, coaches, leaders, founders, innovators, and changemakers, Pre-Zero Sports Talk explores the deeper why behind performance, success, resilience, clean progress, human potential, and the future of sport. Topics include sports leadership, coaching culture, athlete well-being, faith and purpose, human performance, community impact, clean progress, sustainability, innovation and technology, governance, and sports business. No filter. No bias. Straight talk. Subscribe and join real conversations on sport, leadership, faith, performance, purpose, and life beyond the game.
Episodes
What happens when pressure strips everything down to who you really are?
In Episode #105, Sid Bensalah sits down with David Petrash, a U.S. Navy veteran, former nuclear submarine reactor operator, entrepreneur, pastor, leadership speaker, and founder of Ripple of Faith Leadership.
From life aboard nuclear submarines to leadership in business, ministry, and family life, David shares hard-earned lessons on communication...
What happens when you achieve everything you thought you wanted… but still feel exhausted, disconnected, and empty inside?
In this raw and deeply honest conversation, leadership coach and burnout expert Nicole Anderson joins Sid Bensalah to unpack the hidden emotional cost of success, high performance, leadership pressure, parenting, identity, and modern work culture.
Nicole shares her personal journey through burnout...
In Episode 103, Sid Bensalah sits down with Stephanie Sylvestre, CEO and Co-Founder of Avatar Buddy AI, for a raw and deeply human conversation about AI, leadership, human potential, layoffs, community, and the future of work.
Stephanie explains why AI should amplify people rather than replace them, how properly configured AI can build self-esteem and self-agency, and why the erosion of the middle class could become ...
Episode #102 of Pre-Zero Sports Talk features leadership advisor and former COO Björn Vikard in a raw, honest, and deeply insightful conversation on leadership, succession, trust, systems thinking, and high-performance culture.
Drawing on more than 20 years of experience across Sweden, Sri Lanka, India, Indonesia, and Thailand, Björn shares hard-earned lessons on cross-cultural leadership, rebuilding broken trust, fo...
In Episode 101 of the Pre-Zero Sports Talk Podcast, Sid Bensalah sits down with Jonathan K. Osborne, a former Division I basketball player and federal prosecutor, now leading white-collar defense and internal investigations.
This conversation explores preparation vs. uncertainty — and how sports shape leadership, discipline, and identity beyond the game. Jonathan shares how grace, grit, and humility became the founda...
On the milestone Episode 100 of Pre-Zero Sports Talk, Sid Bensalah sits down with Dr. Jack Groppel, a sports science pioneer and author of Mountains Within, for a raw, deeply personal conversation about success, faith, and identity.
From a childhood shaped by a demanding father to a lifelong drive to prove himself, Jack opens up about what he calls “achievement addiction” — the relentless pursuit of external validati...
In this episode, 99, Sid Bensalah talks with Alex Lubyansky, Founder of Detroit Metro FC and former European Sporting Director, to reveal a tough truth about U.S. soccer.
The system is built more for participation than actual performance.
Alex discusses how the pay-to-play model prioritizes players by income over talent, explains how incentives shape behavior at both youth and professional levels, and describes how th...
In Episode 98, Sid Bensalah sits down with Scott Martin, an award-winning soccer coach, educator, and author of Play From Your Heart.
After a life-threatening infection led to septic shock, a month-long coma, and the loss of both hands and parts of his feet, Scott was forced to rebuild his life from the ground up. What followed is a powerful journey of resilience, leadership, and rediscovering purpose through sport.
S...
What if dyslexia is not a disability, but a different method of processing information that schools still do not understand?
In this detailed episode, Sid Bensalah interviews Russell Van Brocklen, a dyslexia researcher funded by the New York State Senate, whose personal struggles with reading and writing drove him to pursue a 20-year mission to reevaluate dyslexia and learning. After being assessed at roughly a firs...
In Episode 96 of the Pre-Zero Sports Talk Podcast, host Sid Bensalah interviews Josephina Oji, Global Director of Impact, Sustainability, and Transformation, for an engaging discussion on leadership, sustainability, and the value of an outsider perspective in sports.
Josephina shares her “squiggly career” journey from law, human rights, and government policy into global sports strategy. Drawing on experience in diplo...
Are men facing a modern masculinity crisis?
In Episode 95 of Pre-Zero Sports Talk, Sid Bensalah sits down with Maxim Shapiro, men’s purpose coach and founder of Forward Motion Coaching, for a raw and honest conversation about depression, identity, effort, and reclaiming authentic self-leadership.
Maxim shares how years of drifting, negative self-talk, and playing it safe led to deep dissatisfaction. In his early 40s, ...
In Episode 94 of the Pre-Zero Sports Talk Podcast, Sid Bensalah sits down with performance coach Tom Waite to explore why your body is the real business plan for any leader aiming for clarity, resilience, and long-term performance. Tom works with executives and founders, using athletic training principles, biometric data, strength work, and recovery systems to help high performers avoid burnout and lead with energy ...
Angela R. Lewis, a former Division I basketball player, championship-winning coach, author, and leadership consultant, joins host Sid Bensalah on the Pre-Zero Sports Talk podcast to discuss the evolving landscape of women's sports. The conversation covers visibility in women's sports, the importance of role models, and the growth and investment that drive the game's popularity. Angela delves into her ...
David Sauers is the co-founder of Royal Restrooms, a visionary entrepreneur and master at turning overlooked problems into meaningful business solutions. From a frustrating moment at a Shakespeare festival in Savannah, Georgia, he sparked an idea that led to a nationwide luxury restroom franchise operating in over 50 U.S. markets.
In this episode of the Pre-Zero Sports Talk Podcast, host Sid Bensalah explores David’s...
In this raw, honest, and wide-ranging conversation, host Sid Bensalah sits down with Bob Labbe, retired engineer and author of Putting by the Numbers, to explore how structure, science, and simplicity can unlock consistency and confidence in your golf game — starting with lag putting.
Bob shares how frustration on the green turned into a 25-year journey that combined engineering logic with real-world results. His met...
Dr. Matthew Kutz, a global leadership expert, scholar, and prostate cancer survivor, joins Sid Bensalah for a powerful and candid conversation about identity, resilience, and faith in the face of real suffering. Diagnosed with advanced metastatic cancer, Matt shares how pain became a teacher and how purpose deepened through adversity.
He shares his initial shock, a shift in his mindset, and how faith, family, and com...
In this inspiring episode, host Sid Bensalah speaks with Kandace Kalin, a former elite synchronized swimmer and founder of O2 Sports Insurance. Kandace opens up about her personal journey — from the rigor of competitive athletics to the boardroom — sharing how grief, wrongful termination, and profound loss reshaped her career and mission. She discusses how the resilience, structure, and discipline from her swimming ...
In this episode, Sid Bensalah welcomes Radha Balani, Partner and Director of Strategy at Think Beyond, for an honest conversation about purpose, performance, and progress in sport. From her deep experience shaping strategies for some of the world’s most iconic clubs and brands, Radha breaks down how sport can—and should—be a vehicle for social change, commercial growth, and community impact.
The episode explores why ...
In this heartfelt episode, Janet Irizarry, founder of My Mindful Kitchen, joins host Sid Bensalah to discuss how the kitchen can influence more than just meals — it can shape minds, values, and legacies. From owning restaurants to launching a food advocacy movement, Janet shares her journey, sparked by a powerful line in her son's college essay: There was never food in the house.
Together, they explore how daily...
In this powerful episode, host Sid Bensalah is joined by Joshua Harrison, co-founder of Leaf Island and co-director of the Center for the Study of the Force Majeure. Together, they unpack how cities around the world can use nature—not just to survive climate stress—but to regenerate and thrive.
This isn't theory. It's about real solutions already in play.
We explore:
- Turning recycled Styrofoam into high-p...
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