How we helped one sport tell its story and gain a coveted spot in the LA28 Olympics.

The Olympics are meant to showcase the best of humanity: Countries of every size coming together, in peace, to play and celebrate sports. Athletes that overcome incredible odds. Feats of strength, endurance, speed, and skill.

But its worldwide resonance today goes beyond the nature of sport to the power of storytelling. Audiences everywhere tune in to root for teams and athletes, learning about the passion, drama and competition within a sport they likely don’t watch every day. This year, viewership of the Milan Cortina Games soared worldwide. In the U.S., NBCUniversal reported that more than 20 million viewers tuned in every day of the competition, streaming more than 16.7 billion minutes of the Games.

The International Olympic Committee and host cities now carefully plan events to maximize audience engagement – shaping the venues and timing of individual matchups to help viewers connect with the story of that sport.

The next Games, LA28, will have a new story to tell: The Olympic debut of squash. And our team is honored to have had a hand in bringing that story to the world stage.

The backdrop: Squash has never been part of the Olympic Games, despite being played in over 185 countries and boasting more than 20 million active players worldwide. Over the years, multiple bids to secure one of the coveted spots as a provisional sport were denied.

But as the global leaders of squash prepared to make their case for the 2028 Olympics, the feeling was different. Optimism was high. The Games were set to be hosted in Los Angeles, representing the sport’s best chance yet for the combined forces of US Squash, World Squash Federation, and the Professional Squash Association.

Four weeks before the group’s pitch to the Organizing Committee of the LA28 Olympic Games, our firm was brought in to sharpen the story and amplify the impact. With limited time, our mission was clear: Help squash articulate why Olympic inclusion would be transformative – not just for the Games, but for the sport itself.

The Olympic Committee analyzes each potential sport according to five key factors, including how much value the sport would add to the Olympic movement, its worldwide popularity, recent innovations, and its business case.

The pitch needed to remain fact-based, but we saw an opportunity to dispel myths about the sport while emphasizing its international presence, community impact and storytelling potential.

With the support and hard work of the sport’s governing bodies and other key players, we created a one-hour pitch that was scripted and produced as a live television show.

Information was organized to address each element of the scorecard and pre-emptively answer questions from the selection committee while telling one cohesive, compelling story.

When Selection Committee members joined the video conference, the cameras in the studio began rolling. The live show was underway.

Behind the studio desk were four hosts: The leaders of the World Squash Federation, Professional Squash Association and US Squash, who all convened in Philly for a dynamic, personal pitch. They were joined by Nouran Gohar, one of the top squash players in the world, who flew in to offer her perspective and human connection as an athlete.

Part of the presentation included screening a short video, “This is Squash,” which we produced to showcase the energy, momentum and accessibility of the sport. The quick cuts, music and dynamic storytelling of this format were a high-energy, engaging way to dispel the misconception that squash served a niche audience, while emphasizing the intensity and athleticism of competition.

The presentation featured powerful stories emphasizing the sport’s alignment with the Olympic values of inclusivity, innovation, and global appeal. By bringing squash to the Olympics for the first time, the presenters demonstrated, LA28 could enrich its program while spotlighting a globally-loved sport ready for its moment on the world stage.

And in October 2023, US Squash and its global partners learned that the sport had finally earned what it so desperately deserved… a long-awaited debut at the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles.

When the next Games begin, audiences around the world will be able to see the competition, athleticism and heart of this sport from Courthouse Square, an iconic Hollywood movie venue on the Universal Studios lot.

It’s featured in many beloved stories, from To Kill a Mockingbird to Back to the Future, and now it will be the backdrop to the story of squash as it unfolds on the Olympic stage.