Eric Wahl
@ziplamak
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KC born-n-raised. If hope is all you've got left, bet it all on hope. Sorun çıkarmak için yeterli Türkçe. Attitude of gratitude. #COYG . He/him🏳️🌈⚽🤔✊🏾🌎
Kansas City, MO
Joined April 2010
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In the span of a few years, I watched Celine's father die on a gurney, my mother died, my mother-in-law died, my father died; last month I had to put down my 19yr-old cat. Last Friday, I'd agreed to a divorce from the love of my life, & later that day, my brother died.
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My husband and I have been on the phone with the state department, and Grant's wife has been in contact with people in the Biden administration. We have faith in our country. We're asking for help to ensure Americans are with his body. We do NOT hate Islam or
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Update: We are traveling with Grant's body to the medical examination & autopsy. Per a US gov official, FIFA is saying AEDs were available at the stadium. Thank you to American Airlines for their incredible help. Thank you to the NY Port Authority & the US government. Humbled.
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To clarify, Grant was a healthy person in his regular life. I know he'd been under the weather recently & that he was told it was bronchitis & given medication. I'm aware of his posts about feeling like his body shut down. He was a workaholic & had used that phrase before w me...
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Muslim people. My brother wore that rainbow shirt at the World Cup in support of us as gay soccer fans.
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NBC is showing the US Men's basketball team medal ceremony, but they wouldn't show the USWNT medal ceremony. In this essay, you better believe I will...
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After we scattered our dad's ashes.
I'm not super media savvy. I understand that people want me to prove I'm Grant's brother. Please understand how taxed we are right now. We all want answers.
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And please, *please,* stop with the vaccine nonsense. Because that's what it is: absolute nonsense. And it's an insult to our family as Grant's wife is an epidemiologist.
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In NYC now. Can update that Grant did go to hospital in an ambulance. Colleagues followed in an Uber. There was no available AED onsite, though it sounds as though it wouldn't have made a difference, if my understanding of the medical situation is correct. G comes home tomorrow.
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I felt, feel, obliterated. Grant was my confidante, my champion, my friend, my defender, my brother & only sibling. Grant knew things that happened to me growing up gay in KS. We had thorough educations in injustice from our educator parents. Grant majored in political science.
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Update: We are grateful to the US government for their help, esp the US ambassador to Qatar for his compassion. Our understanding is Grant's electronics have been secured. We are humbled by the conscientious care of the US embassy in Qatar w.r.t. Grant.
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I am so touched by the outpouring of love & support we have received from around the world. Thank you. Please be kind to one another.
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I'm sorry, y'all. I give up. He just craves any sort of attention, so this is the only thing to do. Misogyny, homophobia, & gleeful, petulant ignorance do not make a good soccer commentator or representation of American soccer. Won't ever watch anyone who employs him.
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Grant would have written something beautiful about Megan Rapinoe today. She's given so much joy to our family.
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Our family will await word from American doctors, and we have faith that the US government people with whom we've been in contact are doing everything they can do to help us get answers. Until then, I'm taking a break to be with loved ones & practice self-care.
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Grant knew my anxiety issues were a big reason why I never wanted a public spotlight, & the past week has been a media education for me. I'm sorry I didn't do a better job. Thank you to Grant's friends & colleagues who reached out. Thank you to the USMNT player who reached out.
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So I'm sitting here with Grant's shoulder bag, staring at it like it should tell me something.
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On the other hand, this is probably the best news for the ensured growth & popularity of Spanish-language broadcasts I can think of
Fox Sports announce they will broadcast 2025 Women's Euros 🏆
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Please keep Celine in your thoughts. She & her mother & sisters have gone to make the ID. I couldn't do it, for my own sanity.
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Grant, I finally watched the first season of Ted Lasso. I wish we could talk about it. You were right; it's full of the dopey-seeming optimism we were brought up with. Ted sure seems like a Roy Williams riff to me. Looking forward to a Ssn 2 binge soon.
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...(body shut down) just as a general indication that he needed to take a break & get some rest, so I didn't immediately feel worried. Please allow me some grace for the emotional video I posted while I was still in shock. I didn't know it would go everywhere...
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I taught summer school in KCMO in '95 to be able to afford to fly down to Buenos Aires to be w Grant as he worked on his senior thesis about the relationship between soccer & voting. He had his laptop stolen; it wouldn't be the last time. I went to Ankara for teaching, then..
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We see your well wishes & kind words. We've read your own touching stories. We're grateful. We see the cruel comments, too. All I can say is we're just people trying our best to grieve under circumstances that put us on the spot...
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...went to Princeton for Grant's gradation. He wanted to show me everything; he still talked like an amazed kid. I was filled with admiration for him. He'd secured an internship at the Miami Herald, & our grandma got him this tiny car he loaded up & drove from KS to FL...
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...he had his laptop stolen again in Miami; this time, they also took his back issues of The New Yorker, which he found almost funny. When Grant signed on w SI, I'd never heard him so overcome w excitement. Grant had wanted to write for SI since elementary school, even writing...
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I've added my proper name here for clarity. We are so appreciative of all of your kind words. We appreciate you.
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Grant & Celine are the very best of us. Grant's sudden exit from our lives will leave a lasting emptiness, but I know our families will find the right ways to honor his work, his devotion, & his beliefs going forward so there is a legacy that may help other people.
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...a letter to the magazine then saying something like, "My name is Grant Wahl, and I want to write for you." He received a reply along the lines of "that's cute & thanks," but the fact he received a reply stuck w him. It had an impact. Coming from where we did, you just..
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...until I returned to delete it, but by then, it was already everywhere. When I learned of Grant's death, my immediate thought was that he had been killed. This was based on things G said to me the last 2 times I spoke w him. But there's obviously no way I know anything certain.
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...can't imagine what that gesture meant to him. And Grant made an effort to act in kind whenever he could from SI & afterward. I think sometimes it was easy for people from cushier backgrounds to take Grant's earnestness for an angle or ploy until they inevitably discovered...
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...that they were getting real Grant. This isn't to say he never got upset. If you were ever one of Grant's editors, you know he was an enthusiastic defender of his own word choices & story ideas, among other things. And if Grant thought he was right about something...
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My stomach feels like it's taken punches since 12/09. I'm exhausted from sadness & just trying to take things moment by moment. Grant never got to open my birthday card to him. Trying to imagine the rest of my life without him hurts physically & mentally.
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As we grew up, Grant saw my discomfort in adolescence & my early 20s as I came to terms with being gay. He knew about the harassment & physical abuse I'd received & their effects on my psyche. He listened, he loved, he supported without question. And I felt so lucky...
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...the week he left us. And it was Dr. Celine Gounder's entry into Grant's life & and our lives, that made the biggest difference, the biggest enhancement. Grant & Celine complimented each other in dynamic ways, & our families became a closely blended organism of sorts.
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..."he was right." Unless he wasn't, and then he'd own it. Unless he still sort of expected he was right all along, which he probably was.
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Grant didn't come out of the box worldly. Growing up, he was the pickiest eater you ever saw. Not only did he not like peanut butter & jelly, he didn't want the jelly or any butter, & he had Mom cut the crusts off. I think what would bring him around was wanting to impress girls.
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It seems possible Grant experienced a pulmonary embolism & was in a non-shockable state.
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And, locally, our beloved KC institutions, Len Dawson and Karen Kornacki. Dear Karen Kornacki, our mom ensured we understood how important it is for women to be better represented in sports media.
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We've been told there are NYC police in Doha working to get more information.
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...was a financial hardship. Grant & I didn't know we were relatively poor. We were surrounded by love, family, neighbors, & Mom & Dad's teacher colleagues--families from India, Mexico, the Philippines, & beyond. We ate ketchup & bologna sandwiches, Chef Boyardee box pizzas...
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Growing up in our tiny ranch house in Mission, we had a steady diet of baseball, football, basketball, tennis, golf, & Olympics on the TV, but also, given the times, Battle of the Network Stars, & Wide World of Sports. Howard Cosell, Diana Nyad, Phyllis George, Donna de Varona...
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...and 7-Up was medicine. When we got a Commodore 64 computer years later, our first game was based on the Olympics, & we spent hours representing different countries in very dot matrix ski jumping, hurdling, running, & speed skating.
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He cheered me through grad school graduations at ESU & the University of Idaho. I hosted Thanksgiving in my Moscow apartment one year for all of us. He & I had regular conversations about everything in our lives & our minds. We cried together & laughed together right into...
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When the ERA didn't pass, we were already well up to speed on feminist aims & efforts thanks to our parents. Mom regularly shared with us each new issue of Ms. Magazine, & we'd sit with her as she explained the "No Comment" section at the back displaying sexist advertising...
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Our mom, a KC native born in Independence, started out as a phys ed teacher & became a counselor. She met our dad at Washington High School in KCK, where Dad taught US government, sociology, & civics for 29yrs. Mom chose to stay at home to raise us, which even then...
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We watched the few women's sports TV had to offer at the time, mainly golf & tennis. I think Grant saw early on how our parents cheered at our TV during sporting events & then our relatives & neighbors, too, & the sense of euphoria captivated him.
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There will be a proper autopsy here in the US. The family will release a proper statement after that.
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Bigotry isn't a valid P.O.V. What chaps my hide about Korbin Albert is that MAGAs will latch onto her & use her as an example of the "intolerance of the left," & that she's a "victim," when she's just a garden variety bigot whose views are contrary to the ideals of the USWNT
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Our grandpa Smith had friends within the Royals organization, specifically Al Zeke, and when we were able to get tickets, the roar of the crowd was unlike anything Grant had ever experienced.
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Happy birthday, Mom. I want to believe you, Dad, & Grant are together in spirit.
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One year ago, I called to wish you a happy birthday. I'm forever grateful we said how much we loved one another. I know you well enough to know you'd be apologizing to me & Celine for what the past year has done to us. Be at peace, Grant
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Evidently, baggage handlers or other people on the tarmac were taking video while we were there. They didn't get much to film. People can be so strange.
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I got to the Ssn2 episode of Ted Lasso in which Roy gives Jamie a hug in the locker room after the big loss & Jamie's dad being awful, and I lost it. This show is everything I needed it to be right now, and I'm so grateful for it.
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On this last day of a hard year in which it feels somehow unfair to relegate Grant to a past forever getting farther away, I want to express my sincere gratitude to all of you who have offered such kind & supportive words. I wouldn't have guessed Twitter could be a force for good
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So much has changed in the year since you left us, Grant. Things haven't been easy. Soccer fans have buoyed me. Kansas Citians have buoyed me.
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I grew up gay in KS in the 80s & 90s. For too many of us certain words used as epithets carry w them triggering reminders of physical violence; Grant knew this. The sociopolitical climate of recent yrs has emboldened a resurgence of bigotry against our community. I see us w pride
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My mom, dad, & brother were alive during the last WWC, & they're all gone as the world begins a new one. I know this isn't how any of us wanted it to be. I get hit w unexpected waves of sadness. Why am I still here? So when I watch & cheer, I'm doing it for the 3 of us.
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@ChrisWittyngham
Thank you for your beautiful words in the last podcast, Chris. We were all in Grant & Celine's apartment listening to it last night. Grant thought so highly of you.
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Soccer is an international sport that, if you know anything abt history & the world, is inherently political. US Soccer should never be a safe space for bigots
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Celine & I were talking today, & I blurted out Grant should be here to write about Rapinoe, & how effing unfair life can be, & how we just have to keep moving but that sometimes even that movement feels unfair, & I cried for the first time in awhile. And we ride in this same boat
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Tell the people in your life that you love them every chance you get. And may you get many chances.
Wishing one & all a holiday of peace, warmth, & tranquility.
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This is one of my favorite pieces Grant wrote about Megan Rapinoe after our mom died. I've hesitated from posting it for 2 main reasons: I originally posted that the whole team signed the jersey, which was wrong (I mistook the pattern for names & hadn't
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In other news, apparently Snohomish has a downtown, and it's being "protected" by hillbillies & their semiautomatic penises.
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For the "shut up & dribble" crowd: My brother, Grant, a pretty fair sports journalist, majored in political science @ Princeton. His senior thesis was literally on the relationship btwn soccer & politics. Learned people like Grant did the f*cking work.
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Speechless. This turned out perfectly. Echoes of the KC Wizards + an emblem that stirs my heart. Thank you,
@olive_york
Grant Wahl Memorial Jersey ❤️
A massive thanks to
@celinegounder
and
@ziplamak
for their input and for allowing us to make this jersey.
100% of proceeds from this jersey will be donated to the
@IWMF
, a charity and cause that Grant cared deeply about.
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For over a year, I thought I'd lost a physical photo that was v important to me, one of the first pictures of Grant, Celine, & me together @ the house Grant & I grew up in on Rock Creek Lane in Mission. Last night, I found it by accident, inside a book in a box in my garage. 1997
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This is what I got on IG. What a world. LGBTQAI people know this already.
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Got back to Seattle & hit the couch crying. It's half Grant & half divorce. I don't know how people cope. Shell-shocked from life.
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I apologize unequivocally. But my initial statement stemmed from 2 things, neither of which related to racism: concerning things Grant told me, and well-known corruption.
@ziplamak
I hope you apologise for your initial reaction that stems from racism once you get your confirmation from US medical doctors…sorry for your loss
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Grant is my brother. He is a soccer journalist covering the World Cup. Qataris hassled him for an effing shirt. Imagine being an LGBTQAI+ Qatari. Shame on
@FIFA
for losing all control over this corrupt World Cup. Sincerely, Grant's gay brother.
Just now: Security guard refusing to let me into the stadium for USA-Wales. “You have to change your shirt. It’s not allowed.”
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Naming the press box at CPKC Stadium for Grant is an amazing honor for our family! The new stadium is going to be a real point of pride for KC. I lost track of how many times I said incredible or wow (+ a couple holy cows). Not a single bad view in the house. Stunning venue
Introducing the Grant Wahl Memorial Press Box at CPKC Stadium 🏟️
Honoring one of the world’s most influential soccer journalists, a Kansas City native and a key figure in KC Current’s founding.
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Drag queens literally got me through this day. Bless you, Silky Nutmeg Ganache.
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What Megan Rapinoe has done for women's soccer, soccer in America, & the world of athletics is immense. Thank you for being you.
It is with a deep sense of peace & gratitude that I have decided this will be my final season playing this beautiful game. I never could have imagined the ways in which soccer would shape & change my life forever, but by the look on this little girl’s face, she knew all along.
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A champion for every team she graced & forever loved in my family
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Bit of a telling false equivalency here, I think. Exhausting
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The last things we said to each other on the phone were how much we were looking forward to seeing each other at Xmas & signing off with I love you. In our family, you always end with I love you, even if folks were mad.
.
@ziplamak
, A sudden, unexpected death is devastating for so many reasons. The hardest part in my experience is that we didn’t get to tell the people we lost how much they meant to us. So, reading your amazing tribute, I just want to say this to you: Grant definitely knew. 💙
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I miss you so much, Grant. I hope we've done, & will continue to do, right by you
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So many soccer stories I wish Grant was here to tell these days
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@bomikey24
@lookner
I'm doing it mainly to have something to do during the long waits so I'm not too into in my head with my thoughts.
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Grant would have laughed at Taylor's KC dig, everyone. Please know that.
And thank you, Taylor. I remember you congratulating Pete & me on our marriage.
Life is fragile and there is always a reminder in there to live each moment for what it is. Don’t worry about the past nor the future, take care of the now. It’s the only guarantee in life.
RIP
@GrantWahl
St Louis is still better than Kansas my friend. 💔💔💔
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