EDITORâS NOTE
MORE THAN FUN AND GAMES In the world we inhabited four months ago, our attention right now was supposed to be directed at the Summer Olympics in Tokyo. But even though the Games are delayedâtill next year or beyondâlife for the athletes pursuing glory marches on. Our cover story, âAmerican Muscleâ (page 22), digs deep into two female cyclists, Kate Courtney and ChloĂ© Dygert, who are fundamentally different characters in different disciplines united in this unprecedented moment by one goal: Being the very best.
CONTRIBUTORS THIS ISSUE
PETRA ERIKSSON
âI always enjoy getting the chance to portray people who havenât been made visible enough, whether that has to do with their gender, sexual orientation or skin color,â says the Barcelona-based illustrator, who contributed portraits of four such individuals in âGamers Like Us,â which profiles people who are making that industry more inclusive. Erikssonâs work often appears in The New Yorker. Page 56
Photographer (and cycling fanatic) Joe Pugliese poses with an elite crew (left to right): Tim Johnson, Colin Strickland, Courtney, Kristin Armstrong and Dygert.
This issue also explores other ways games are being transformed. In âBulletproofâ (page 48) we visit with Twitch streamer Anne Munition, who is at once entertaining fans and fighting online bullies. And âGamers Like Usâ (page 56) profiles four gamers who literally reflect the changing face of that community. Together these stories show how the nature of the long game in sport is being redefined. 04
The Pennsylvania-based writer contributed two stories in this issue, both featuring people who are making gaming more inclusive. âAs our social lives splintered during the pandemic, I thought a lot about how comforting it would be for gamers to connect in their community,â says Fennessy, whose work has appeared in Bicycling and Outside. âIt was nice to think about places that COVID-19 couldnât reach.â Pages 48 and 56
THE RED BULLETIN
JOE PUGLIESE (COVER)
CHRISTINE FENNESSY
