SC Reportajes: Becoming Che
The 7th Annual Awards
- Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, & Belonging
ABOUT THIS ENTRY
At the start of the 2023-24 season, Che became the first trans and non-binary referee in U.S. sports. The California native with Hispanic heritage decided after 14 years of officiating basketball, at all levels (High School, NCAA, WNBA, G-League and now NBA), that it was time to reveal their true identity and become a reference for younger generations of LGBTQ+ community.
How does this represent "Excellence in Engagement"?
I believe this story represents an excellence in engagement because it shines a light on the LGBTQ+ within mainstream sports and at the same time, it highlights a member of the refereeing community who we tend to remember only when they make a mistake. Hopefully, this work inspires others to tell more inclusive stories. It’s our job as storytellers to push the envelope and make our audiences think and reflect about situations in our society.
Objective
For us, it was very important to showcase the human side of a sports figure that never receives much love, the referee, and at the same time cast a spotlight on a sensitive topic.
Strategy & Execution
When we began to work on Sc Featured: Becoming Che, we knew from the start that Che’s identity would be a sensitive topic and many would be drawn away from the story, so it was extremely important to us that our audience would identified with Che’s love and passion for basketball off the top, and as the story progressed they can learn about their path to the NBA and follow their story to self-discovery.
Organizations
- ESPN
- SportsCenter
Links
Credits
Nicolas Salazar
Producer
ESPN
Jose Alvarez
Producer
ESPN
Gustavo Coletti
Executive Producer
ESPN
Jose Morales
Executive Producer
ESPN
Craig T. Lazarus
Executive Producer
ESPN
Katherine Barnes
Reporter
ESPN
Jason Sanchez
Editor
ESPN
Celebrate in NYC
Join us for the 7th Annual Hashtag Sports Awards™ on the evening of June 24, 2025 as we celebrate finalists and reveal the winners of this year's awards live during the show.
