Sasha Abramsky

Back Writer

Sasha Abramsky is a Sacramento-based freelance journalist. He is the Western correspondent for The Nation Magazine and has written nine books, the latest being “Little Wonder: The Fabulous Story of Lottie Dod, the World’s First Female Sports Superstar.”

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Tennis, My Beautiful Obsession

One man’s sometimes futile quest to watch matches while traveling around the world

I recall that as a young man I desperately tried to find a television in India’s lower Himalayas to watch one of the many Wimbledon finals in which Pete Sampras appeared — and eventually had to settle for a hotel with a black and white TV and a dubious antenna that, despite the manager swearing up and down would show Wimbledon if I wanted it to, in fact aired nothing but crackle.

Oct 18, 2024 Sasha Abramsky

Giving Students a Fighting Chance With Combat U

When Dr. Luke Wood was finding his sea legs as Sac State’s new president, he walked over to Urijah Faber’s Ultimate Fitness gym on Folsom Boulevard, put on his boxing gloves and sparred with the gym owner. Then a light went off in Wood’s head. Since he was reinventing the university anyway, why not use the opportunity to partner with Faber in setting up a system so students could go to school for fighting?

May 3, 2024 Sasha Abramsky

The Bold Vision of Dr. Luke Wood

Sac State’s new, young president is creating an AI hub, Black honors program, college for foster youth and Combat U

Dr. Luke Wood has set his competitive sights on remaking his university into an institution that can compete academically, not just with other CSUs — he is clear in his ambition to make the beautiful, tree-filled and ethnically diverse campus the flagship university in the CSU system — but with the University of California campuses and other top-tier institutions around the country. 

May 1, 2024 Sasha Abramsky