{"id":610381,"date":"2026-04-17T14:42:14","date_gmt":"2026-04-17T14:42:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/610381\/"},"modified":"2026-04-17T14:42:14","modified_gmt":"2026-04-17T14:42:14","slug":"sue-bird-shares-advice-for-young-athletes-talks-geico-partnership","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/610381\/","title":{"rendered":"Sue Bird Shares Advice for Young Athletes & Talks GEICO Partnership"},"content":{"rendered":"

\n\tWhen you think of greatness, many faces probably come to mind, especially in the sports world. And chances are, you think of WNBA <\/a>legend Sue Bird. Bird, known for winning four WNBA <\/a>championships with the Storm, five Olympic gold medals, and four FIBA World Cups, is in her post-retirement era, and it\u2019s all about making sure the next generation understands the importance of sports.<\/p>\n

\t\t\t<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Candace<\/p>\n

\tRelated story<\/p>\n

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\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n

\n\tIn case you missed it, Bird is partnering with GEICO, which, through its NCAA partnership, is focused on expanding access to youth sports, also partnering with Good Sports and local Boys & Girls Clubs.<\/p>\n

\n\tThe huge philanthropic event is a sponsor of the NCAA Men\u2019s Final Four\u00ae Dribble & Women\u2019s Final Four\u00ae Bounce (with the events held in Phoenix and Indianapolis<\/a>); and Bird played a huge role in the Phoenix event.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cThey\u2019re not just thinking about these lessons, they\u2019re actually giving kids access to have these lessons,\u201d she said in an interview with SheKnows about working on her campaign with GEICO. \u201cLike access to equipment, safe spaces, support systems, so they can play, they can grow, and feel like they belong. That\u2019s just so crucial to a young person\u2019s development.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tWhen speaking with Bird, her truly down-to-Earth energy comes forward. It feels like speaking with your wise friend who knows all the answers, the one who knows what to say to get you back to your A-game. Whether it\u2019s giving pearls of wisdom about handling social media or recounting an inspiring tale, Bird knows exactly what to say.<\/p>\n

\n\tBelow, see what Bird had to say about the GEICO partnership, social media, and what she wants young athletes to keep in mind:<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\"In<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\tIn partnership with GEICO, WNBA legend and four-time champion Sue Bird joined the local community at the Bounce event in Phoenix to celebrate GEICO\u2019s donation of sports equipment to a local Boys & Girls Clubs on Saturday, April 4, 2026 in Phoenix. (Mark Peterman\/AP Content Services for GEICO)<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tMark Peterman<\/p>\n

\n\tRELATED: Why Girls\u2019 Flag Football Is Exploding Right\u00a0Now<\/a><\/p>\n

\n\tSheKnows: Can you tell me a bit about why you partnered with Geico and a bit about their NCAA sponsorship initiatives?<\/p>\n

\n\tSue Bird: I\u2019m passionate about partnering with people that wanna give back to communities. The Final Four is such a huge event, I think it\u2019s one of the marquee events for women\u2019s basketball<\/a>. Their campaign was Bounce, which was this really wonderful way of getting the Boys and Girls Club, and really any kids, out there and dribbling a ball. I think whenever you can give back to communities, which is what Geico is doing, that\u2019s something that I\u2019m always gonna be a part of.<\/p>\n

\n\tSK: As you said, this campaign is all about helping communities become better in some way, shape, or form. And can you tell me a story about how you witnessed a positive community change firsthand?<\/p>\n

\n\tSB: When I was a little kid, I feel like my parents did a great job of exposing me to different sports, exposing me to different people. There were definitely times when I went into camps, and I was able to interact with the speakers that they brought in. It\u2019s funny because one of them was Carol Blazejowski. I\u2019m dating myself a little bit, but Blaze, which is her nickname, is one of the all-time great women\u2019s basketball players. When I think back to her, her conversation with us, I have like vivid memories of it. I was probably 11, and I could still sit here and talk to you about it.<\/p>\n

\n\tSB: What\u2019s interesting is [that when] you fast forward, Blaze actually was the GM of the New York Liberty when I got into the league. And I actually got to share that story with her. So when I think of that moment for myself, I think of what I was able to do with the opportunity to partner with GEICO and, really, the opportunity they gave me to connect with these communities. Like, there might be a kid who I came in contact with the other day in Phoenix<\/a>, [and] maybe we had a moment that they might be able to tell a story similar to what I just told.<\/p>\n

\n\tRELATED: Young Olympic & Paralympic Athletes on the Joys & Challenges They\u2019ve Faced as Women in\u00a0Sports<\/a><\/p>\n

\n\tSK: That\u2019s such a sweet story, and I\u2019m sure that\u2019s the case. Now I know this campaign is also about instilling the importance of resilience and leadership skills. How have you seen youth sports help build that in kids?<\/p>\n

\n\tSB: The beauty about youth sports is that as a young person, you\u2019re on teams. The thing I think about sports is [that] it\u2019s gonna teach you life lessons. Listen, if you can become a pro, that\u2019s even better. But the beauty of playing sports, no matter what level, no matter how far you go, is that the lessons you take with you are so important. It\u2019s team building, it\u2019s being able to set goal goals, understand that you\u2019re gonna have setbacks, but you have to keep going to try to achieve. I feel like it\u2019s as simple as learning how to play with others, which, when you get older, is learning how to work with others. But a big part of that is failure, and you get to learn about failure at a young age, too, which is really important.<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\"In<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\tIn partnership with GEICO, WNBA legend and four-time champion Sue Bird joined the local community at the Bounce event in Phoenix to celebrate GEICO\u2019s donation of sports equipment to a local Boys & Girls Clubs on Saturday, April 4, 2026 in Phoenix. (Mark Peterman\/AP Content Services for GEICO)<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tMark Peterman<\/p>\n

\n\tSK: Young athletes<\/a> deal with so much in the age of social media and just constant comparisons to one another. What words of wisdom do you have, though, for kids who are feeling that<\/p>\n

\n\tSB: [When] talking to younger people, I always like to share: I\u2019m 45 years old, I have a lot of hardware, so to speak, to show my success, and even I fall victim to what happens on social media, even I struggle with it from time to time. I think it\u2019s really important to not feel alone in that, and simultaneously show yourself some grace in that. Like, it is hard to open it up and compare yourself to others, or maybe in some scenarios have people say negative things about you. I like to remind people that in my experience, I\u2019ve never had anybody say the things that I\u2019ve read about myself online to my face. And really, what that tells you is this is just a world that has real consequences. Because it feels real, but it\u2019s actually just the fake world.<\/p>\n

\n\tSB: Then again, on the comparison part: I say this all the time, again, I had a very successful career, and if you had five of me on the basketball court, it wouldn\u2019t have been a good team<\/a>. You need differences. You need different players, you need different people to bring their experience, to bring their skill set. That\u2019s what makes good teams, which means you have to bring yourself. So while it can be hard not to compare yourself to somebody else, you always have to remind yourself that what you\u2019re bringing is equally.<\/p>\n

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