Gigi Speer is a personality that keeps popping up in my news feed so I decide it was time to reach out. As the second person to participate in our new interview series, I sat down with Gigi to talk about her work with sports media and her role as an inspiration for young athletes.
About Genevieve Speer
Gigi is an experienced on-air personality known for her ability to connect people through unique stories. With a background as a professional in-game host, reporter, and radio show host in the sports industry, she has built bridges by interviewing a diverse range of individuals, from athletes to fans, and finding the common threads that bring us together. As a lifelong learner and avid listener, Gigi’s passion for sharing unbelievable stories and meeting incredible people has shaped her career.
First of all, congrats on launching gigispeer.com. What is the goal of the website and what are your plans for 2023 with gigispeer.com? What are the types of sports stories you focus on?
Gigi. Thank you so much! It was amazing to build and design an online portfolio with gigispeer.com, somewhere where I can host all my different work.
This year, I’m obsessed with telling the story of players that you may not know, and in doing so, I hope to give everyone a chance to relate to them. I recently spoke with Savannah Bananas outfield Vinny DeRubeis about his career, and how the power of knowledge and spirituality pushed him to keep playing after a horrible baseball accident that left him blind in one eye.
Without giving too much away, I look forward to speaking with NBA rookies, WNBA superstars, and also young talent that hasn’t even entered into the world of college athletics yet. I find that the stories that move me the most are the ones that take you by surprise, and give you insight into another person’s life that you can find a part of yourself in.
You have been involved with sports broadcasting with CNBC, MSG Networks, as well as Athletes Unlimited. How would you summarize your work with sports media today and what is the best part of your job(s)?
Gigi. My work so far has been a sampler of it all, with a focus on basketball in particular. I’ve covered everything from college tennis to professional Draft Days where dreams are made, and one of the best parts is seeing a team progress – the highs and lows-over the course of a season.
With this, I find myself getting to know players on a deeper level than I thought I could. The overarching best feeling though is one of hope that finds its way into every single story I investigate and document.
You recently spoke at an event organized by The Hoops and Dreams Foundation. What prompted you to participate, what topics did you cover, and what was the reception? Do you have plans to do more public speaking engagements and workshops in the future?
Gigi. I recently spoke to a group of middle and high school boys and girls looking to play basketball in high school and college, and although I never was a high school boy nor did I play basketball in college, I feel like I have skin in the game.
If I can get just a handful of girls in particular to want to pursue a sport, to embody strength, and to own their confidence, my life mission is complete
My journey to playing Division 1 college softball was not easy, but it is one of the most fulfilling things I have ever done in my life. After four years of playing softball at Fordham University, I have a strong group of life-long friends, I have wisdom I reflect on every single day that I gained on the field and with the team, and I have this desire to encourage the younger generation to own their talent and their passion.
Growing up in Bridgeport, Connecticut, a city with limited resources and high rates of incarceration, I feel so lucky to be where I am now. To speak to almost 70 kids that day at the Hoops and Dreams Foundation, I hope just one of them left the talk with a new sense of determination in their sports journey. I had gone to that camp when I was younger, and it was personally a nice full circle moment for me.
Even more, to have a group of the girls come up to me afterward and thank me for being there was a dream come true. I told them about my high school journey of playing volleyball, basketball, and softball, and the kinds of lessons I learned along the way. The failures, the successes, and the moments in between that kept me going. If I can get just a handful of girls in particular to want to pursue a sport, to embody strength, and to own their confidence, my life mission is complete. This is the kind of work that needs to be done every day, and a perspective I try to maintain throughout my career. For this reason, I would love to do as many speaking engagements as possible!
Do you bet on sports? What is your view on the rise of sports betting in the US, and about the fact that millions of women bet on sports but there is very little focus on women bettors?
Gigi. Valeria, I would love to bet on sports. Playing at the D1 level, I have avoided betting on sports. Now that I’m out and working, I think it could be a great thing to learn more about, with your help.
