Weekly Newsletter, Sept. 23, 2026: Emily's Squad Strikes Gold
GOOD MORNING.
Remember when I told you USA Paralympian Emily Oberst's squad was rolling through pool play a couple weeks back? Well, they didn't stop rolling. Team USA women's wheelchair basketball just won the whole thing — first World Championship title since 2010 — and they did it the hardest way possible. Let's get into it.
In today's newsletter, we'll look at:
Team USA's wheelchair basketball squad brings home gold
What I heard front-row at the launch of the Mother in Sport Collective
Cejih's Corner: structuring your week for sales success
One more thing: early buzz on Becoming Uncommon
Gold for Team USA — and Emily Oberst's squad is on top of the world
Two weeks ago I told you Emily and Team USA blew out Germany to open the World Championship. Well, they kept going. On Saturday in Ottawa, the U.S. women's wheelchair basketball team beat Canada 77-76 in an absolute nail-biter of a final — their first World Championship title since 2010. It came down to free throws in the final 20 seconds: Courtney Ryan hit one of two to put the U.S. up, Canada missed its answer, and that was the ballgame.
Emily and 11 teammates (plus one incredible 18-year-old newcomer, Arelle Middleton) just put the rest of the world on notice heading into LA28. This is exactly the kind of "next chapter" moment I love getting to be part of. Congrats to Emily and the whole squad — go get some rest, you earned it.
Personal story: More than a line item
On Thursday, September 17, I flew up to San Francisco and walked into Strava's headquarters for what felt like history being made — and yes, I was the guy in the third row with his phone recording and a notebook already full before the panel even started. I show up in person for my clients. This business runs on relationships, and you can't build those from a spreadsheet.
For All Mothers+ (FAM+) chose that day to launch the Mother in Sport Collective (MISC) — the first industry alliance of sports brands to publicly pledge to standardize maternity protections for elite and recreational athletes. Founding members: Strava, Brooks, lululemon, Hoka, Clif, Hettas, Brodo, Altra, rabbit, Oiselle, and GU.
I was there because one of our own was on the athlete panel: Kaleo Kanahele Maclay. Four-time Paralympic medalist. Mother. FAM+ Legacy Champion. Member of the U.S. women's sitting volleyball team with a medal at every single Games she's played — silver in London, gold in Rio, gold in Tokyo, gold in Paris.
Kaleo opened by naming something most people don't say out loud: women in sport already start from a place of inequity. Add a disability, then add the constant hustle to fund an elite career, and you get athletes fighting on multiple fronts just to reach their potential. "We sometimes feel as though we're screaming from the rooftops," she told the room — and then she made the case that change starts with each person's sphere of influence. That room was hers. Now it's yours too, which is exactly why I'm putting this in front of you.
She won her first medal at 16. By Rio she was 20, freshly married, and unexpectedly pregnant — right at the start of her Paralympic career. The support dropped off fast. "I personally am doing the climbing," she said, describing how she had to fight for herself just to keep competing. She thought about every Paralympian mother who hit that same wall and didn't make it back. The two gold medals she's won since might never have happened. By Tokyo, with real support in place through FAM+, she competed while pregnant with her second son.
Her line that's stuck with me since: "No disability is the same. There's a spectrum of disability. And I believe the same to be about motherhood too. No journey in motherhood is the same."
Her ask for brands was refreshingly concrete: ask how your decisions affect mothers with disabilities, put athletes with disabilities in the room when decisions get made, sweat the small stuff (like whether someone needs a higher or lower chair), and just ask the question instead of tiptoeing around it. "Just asking the question makes us feel like you've thought about us enough to ask," she said.
I left with one takeaway I'm carrying into every partnership conversation we have from here on out: motherhood, family, and accessibility belong in the first conversation with a brand, not a clause added later. Kaleo, you represented yourself, the Paralympic community, and CG Sports with more honesty and strength than most people bring to a highlight reel. Proud to be in your corner.
Cejih's Corner: structure your week, and sales takes care of itself
One of the questions I get most from other agents and athlete-entrepreneurs is "how do you actually get anything done with this many moving pieces?" The honest answer: I don't try to do everything every day. I theme my days, and I protect the theme.
Here's the rhythm that works for me:
Monday — Newsletter day, and I follow up on every deal currently in motion. Nothing new gets started until the pipeline I already have is accounted for.
Tuesday — Pure prospecting. Account research, outreach, new relationships. I do this work away from the office (I like a WeWork — new environment, fewer distractions) so it doesn't get swallowed by the day-to-day.
Wednesday — Proposals and projects. This is when contracts, decks, and paperwork actually get built and sent.
Thursday — Back to prospecting. A second full day of outreach compounds fast — most people give up after one.
Friday — Recap and client updates. I close the week by telling clients what happened, not letting them wonder.
The step that matters most: pick the theme before the week starts, not while you're in it. A calendar that already has "Tuesday = outreach" blocked off removes the decision-fatigue that kills most sales weeks before they begin.
Read the full post → Weekly Rhythm: How I Structure for Sales Success
One more thing
Dan Freschi's Becoming Uncommon: The Student-Athlete's Guide to Leadership and Life (out October 6 from CG Sports Publishing) is already getting attention from early readers:
"A complete, practical and actionable leadership resource that empowers and equips student-athletes and coaches alike to not only impact their community but create a legacy." — Matt Gifford, Director of Sports Performance, Ethic Sports Performance
"Becoming Uncommon is a transformative guide for any student-athlete aspiring to excel in life... This book is not just about winning; it's about leaving a lasting legacy and becoming a better person." — Peter Ericksen, Co-founder, Best Version Media
Two weeks out from launch. If there's a student-athlete, coach, or parent in your life who could use it, keep an eye out — more to come. becominguncommon.us
CG Sports Client Events
Sept 26-27, 2026 (Framingham, MA): Clinic with Life Time New England, Kieran Smith.
Oct 2-3, 2026 (Summit, NJ): Clinic with Summit Area YMCA, Phoebe Bacon.
Oct 3, 2026 (Arvada, CO): Clinic with North Jeffco Swim Team, Rebecca Soni.
Oct 3, 2026 (Portland, OR): Clinic with Oregon Swimming LSC, Ella Eastin.
Oct 9-10, 2026 (Seattle, WA): Clinic with WEST, Lilly King
Oct 27, 2026 (Bloomingdale, NJ): Keynote at Walter T Bergen Middle School, Jack Wallace.
Oct 27, 2026: Speaking engagement at West Ridge Elementary School, Jack Wallace.
Nov 3-4, 2026: USADA Athlete Panel, Jack Wallace.
Nov 14-15, 2026 (Bay City, MI): Clinic with Bay City Aquatics Club, McKenzie Siroky.
Nov 18, 2026: Speaking engagement at Bryn Mawr School, Emily Oberst.
Dec 3, 2026 (Wilton, CT): Leadership keynote & Captain's Workshop at Wilton High School, Elizabeth Beisel.
Jan 10, 2027 (Issaquah, WA): Clinic with Issaquah Swim Team, Hali Flickinger.
Apr 10, 2027 (venue TBD): Clinic with Border Swimming LSC
That's the week. See you next Wednesday.
Cejih and The CG Sports Company
