This week on the You Can Play Podcast, we're joined by founder and President Jess Duggan of the Portland United Hockey League to talk about the power of inclusive sport, finding community on and off the ice, and Portland's upcoming Dirty Bird's Tournament!

You can learn more about the Portland United Hockey League Here https://www.portlandunitedhockey.com/

Executive Director Kurt Weaver and Education Director Ren Dawe sit down and discuss the upcoming World Cup, the Gay Games, and some team updates before Pride 2026!

In this episode, Ren sits down with Alex Mangione-Smith, founder of CP Soccer Arizona, NIRCA’s DEI & Title IX Officer, and a coordinator with one•n•ten, to talk about what it really takes to build inclusive spaces in sports.

From adaptive soccer to college policy to LGBTQ+ youth work, Alex shares how access, not just inclusion, shapes who gets to play, and who gets left out. They dig into the gap between policy and lived experience, what coaches often misunderstand, and why small actions can have a lasting impact.

You can learn more about Alex's work here:

• CP Soccer: https://www.cpsoccer.us/
• one-n-ten: https://onenten.org/
• NIRCA: https://clubrunning.org/

In this episode, we sit down with Zoey Pellowitz (she/her), Youth Hockey Coordinator for the Washington Capitals, to talk about what it really means to coach with care. From growing up in hockey and playing Division III, to shifting from college coaching to working with five-year-olds, Zoey shares how joy, listening, and meeting players where they are can shape confidence and belonging. We explore uncomfortable but necessary coaching conversations, modeling healthy team behavior, navigating queerness in sport, and the power of initiatives like All Caps All Her to bring more girls, women, and families into the game.

https://capsyouthhockey.com/all-caps-all-her/

This week on the You Can Play Podcast, we’re joined by Erin Kennedy, CEO and founder of Girls Rugby. We talk about building confidence through sport, expanding access for girls and gender-diverse athletes, and why rugby has become a powerful vehicle for leadership, belonging, and change.

https://girlsrugby.org/about/

In this episode of the You Can Play Podcast, Lauren Bonzell (she/her) — a graduate student in Sport, Exercise & Performance Psychology at Long Beach State — shares insights from her ongoing thesis on LGBTQ+ athletes’ experiences in recreational and competitive sport.

Lauren discusses two key psychological frameworks guiding her work: the Minority Stress Model, which helps explain how chronic exposure to discrimination and internalized stigma affects health and identity, and the Flow State Model, which captures the joy, focus, and motivation athletes feel when they can truly be themselves. She explores how systemic bias, exclusion, and locker-room culture disrupt that flow — and how affirming spaces can restore it.

Through her research and personal reflections, Lauren challenges common narratives about fairness and trans inclusion, reminding listeners that the real threats to women’s sports are power imbalances, abuse, and a lack of women in leadership, not transgender participation. As she prepares to graduate, she shares what keeps her grounded: gratitude, perspective, and the belief that every researcher — and every athlete — deserves to know they’re on the right path.

In this episode of the You Can Play Podcast, David Thibodeau — a longtime swim coach, Canada Games board member, and policy professional for the Government of Canada — reflects on what it means to bring your full self to sport.

David shares his journey from coming out as an athlete to later coming out as a coach, and the fears that came with being openly gay while working with young swimmers and their families. He speaks about the power of visibility, signals, and symbols — from small cues like rainbow shoelaces to big ones like inclusive signage at major events — and how these gestures set the tone for belonging before anyone even dives in.

He also talks about recognizing exclusion in subtle moments — a comment, a lane assignment, a missed conversation — and how coaches can respond with empathy instead of judgment. His message is simple but vital: authenticity isn’t just freeing for the coach; it improves performance, deepens trust, and reminds every athlete that being yourself is the real win.

In this episode of the You Can Play Podcast, Brock Robinson Barclay — lifelong athlete, hockey and baseball coach, and sport management professional — joins us to talk about how culture is built, one small moment at a time.

Drawing on experiences across locker rooms, teams, and community events, Brock shares how trust and teaching are the foundation of a healthy team environment. From addressing slurs on the ice to celebrating players’ individuality off it, he reflects on what it means to create a space where everyone feels like they belong — not just as athletes, but as people.

Brock talks about moving away from “punishment culture,” the difference between discipline and teaching, and how tiny gestures of care — like a shin tap — can rebuild trust when words fall short. His philosophy is simple but powerful: “If someone feels safe enough to be themselves on your team, that’s a win.”