SI profiled several former athletes to give readers an inside look at where they are now. Below are excerpts from some of those profiles.
Sosa, who has been accused of using steroids during his time with the Cubs, remains in exile from the clubGETTY IMAGES
SAMMY SOSA: Twenty summers after he and MARK MCGWIRE "chased the ghost" of ROGER MARIS, Sosa has become an "international man of commerce." Sosa said that he has "interests in his home country, the Dominican Republic (oil); as well as in Panama (stormproof housing); the U.K. (beverages and hospitality); and the United Arab Emirates (real estate)." But Sosa, who has been accused of using steroids during his time with the Cubs, "remains in exile" from the club. A team source said, "It’s never been our position that we want Sammy to wear a hair shirt and sit in front of Wrigley and be punished for weeks on end. This is simply, ‘I messed up, and there’s something to learn from it, and I’d love to get back in the fold.’ It would take one sentence.” However, that is the "one sentence Sosa won’t say." Sosa said, "I never failed a drug test. So why are you asking me about that, when they don’t have nothing on Sosa?"
TONY HAWK: Ten years ago, Hawk "bought full control of the Birdhouse skate brand he created" in '93. He then "embarked on a five-year plan to make the line of skateboards and apparel one of the sport's most respected brands." Hawk now is in talks to "start his own marketing agency after nearly four decades of wrestling with others about how skateboarding should be portrayed." He is "working on a play" with singer MARK MOTHERSBAUGH that would "take the kickflip to Broadway." He is also "shopping a TV pilot based on a group of skaters."
AHMAD RASHAD: The longtime broadcaster and former NFLer "seems to know everybody." In the '90s, he was NBC’s NBA sideline reporter and had a "Gumpian tendency to turn up unexpectedly in pop culture." Lately, Rashad has been "working as a corporate spokesman, hosting special events for the NBA, playing lots of golf." Of all his famous friends, Rashad is "most closely associated with MICHAEL JORDAN." Rashad currently lives in Jupiter, Fla., "across the street from Jordan." They try to "get in 36 holes whenever they can," playing with TIGER WOODS, RORY MCILROY or JUSTIN THOMAS on a "semiregular basis." They have also "gone out about a dozen times" with PRESIDENT OBAMA.
MARK MOSELEY: The former NFLer has "been an entrepreneur since his MVP season" in '82, after which he invested his Redskins Super Bowl check "into a travel business" in DC. He sold that outfit in '98 and "opened a restaurant, Moseley's Burgers, in suburban Herndon, Va." Then, in '01, Five Guys Owner MATT MURRELL "stopped by Moseley's place." Moseley eventually became the "first nonfamily member" to be an executive with the chain. He now serves as Five Guys Dir of Franchise Sales & Development and has "overseen the growth of a pop-and-sons shop [five locations in '01] to one with 1,500 restaurants worldwide."
MARTINA NAVRATILOVA: The 61-year-old is "thoroughly recognizable" as the player who won 18 Grand Slams from '78-90. She remains "fully informed, ferociously curious and fiercely opinionated." At a time when "athletes and activism often didn't mix, she refused to stick to sports, speaking her mind on matters from immigration to animal rights." Navratilova said, "I try to find a balance between being involved but not consuming me because then it affects my family life. So, it is a tricky proposition." On championship athletes and teams skipping the White House visit with PRESIDENT TRUMP in office, Navratilova said, "You never had a reason not to come. I may not have agreed with RONALD REAGAN, but you would still go. Maybe you wouldn't be thrilled about it, but you would still go. Now? That man? And PENCE? I am certainly not going if I ever have the opportunity. You have to take a stand. Or take a knee" (SI, 7/2 issue).
