{"podcast":{"title":"Pretty Tough with Maria Sharapova","slug":"pretty-tough-with-maria-sharapova-7814858","podcast_index_feed_id":7814858,"rss_url":"https://feeds.megaphone.fm/VMP7437512264","website_url":"http://podcasts.voxmedia.com","image_url":"https://megaphone.imgix.net/podcasts/1a2f82b6-22db-11f1-81bc-372e1a74b223/image/68c364b89291810451235cf78fd6de1c.jpg?ixlib=rails-4.3.1&max-w=3000&max-h=3000&fit=crop&auto=format,compress","author":"Vox Media","episode_count":12,"summary":"Five-time Grand Slam champion, entrepreneur, and bestselling author Maria Sharapova brings her trademark intensity and drive to a weekly podcast that challenges how female ambition is defined and discussed. In each episode of Pretty Tough, Sharapova sits down with high-achieving women across industries for candid, wide-ranging conversations about their pursuit of excellence without apology. Inspired by Sharapova’s own journey as a world-class athlete and entrepreneur, the show serves as a space where discussions about peak performance, career strategy, wellness, and leadership aren't diluted by gender-specific expectations and where being gritty and being female aren't seen as contradictory states of being. New episodes drop Wednesdays. Part of the Vox Media Podcast Network.","last_synced_at":"2026-07-09T04:18:11.626587+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/pretty-tough-with-maria-sharapova-7814858"},"episode":{"title":"Misty Copeland Never Wanted to Stand Out. Then She Changed Ballet Forever","slug":"misty-copeland-never-wanted-to-stand-out-then-she-changed-ballet-forever","published_at":"2026-06-24T10:00:00+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/pretty-tough-with-maria-sharapova-7814858/misty-copeland-never-wanted-to-stand-out-then-she-changed-ballet-forever","show_page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/pretty-tough-with-maria-sharapova-7814858","url":"https://www.podtrac.com/pts/redirect.mp3/pdst.fm/e/mgln.ai/e/257/pscrb.fm/rss/p/traffic.megaphone.fm/VMP7859322487.mp3","audio_url":"https://www.podtrac.com/pts/redirect.mp3/pdst.fm/e/mgln.ai/e/257/pscrb.fm/rss/p/traffic.megaphone.fm/VMP7859322487.mp3","summary":"Legendary ballerina Misty Copeland pulls back the curtain on the most pivotal moments of her career. From performing on the Oscars stage alongside the cast of Sinners—and addressing Timothée Chalamet’s infamous comments—to the unique experience of collaborating with icons like Prince and Taylor Swift, Misty shares it all. Misty and Maria also dive into the reality of performing through injury: the physical toll, the mental resilience required to keep going, and what these challenges taught her about her body and its limits. Misty Copeland is the true embodiment of Pretty Tough. All that and more on this episode of Pretty Tough. Pretty Tough is produced in partnership with VOX MEDIA. ⁠⁠⁠⁠Listen to every episode on your favorite podcast platform⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠Follow Maria on Instagram ⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠Follow Maria on X⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠Follow Pretty Tough on Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠Subscribe to Pretty Tough on Substack⁠ 00:00:00 – Intro: The Evolving Athlete 00:02:15 – Finding Her Voice: Overcoming \"Little Mouse\" 00:07:30 – Survival Mode to Artistic Passion 00:09:30 – The First Ballet Class: From Basketball Court to Prodigy 00:13:45 – The Studio as a Sanctuary 00:14:15 – Stage Presence vs. Public Speaking Nerves 00:19:30 – The Power of Consistency in Performance 00:22:00 – Dancing Through Pain: The 2012 Firebird Season 00:27:15 – A Career-Ending Injury and the Road to Recovery 00:29:45 – Redefining the Relationship to Pain 00:32:00 – Lifelong Learning: Evolving Technique Post-Principal 00:33:45 – Art vs. Sport: Why Ballet is Subjective 00:36:00 – Breaking the Curtain: The Role of Social Media 00:39:00 – The Farewell Performance: A Thank You to the Journey 00:42:30 – The Prince Connection: Lessons in Identity and Excellence 00:47:00 – Returning to the Stage: The Oscars and Sinners 00:51:30 – Collabor…","meta_description":"Legendary ballerina Misty Copeland pulls back the curtain on the most pivotal moments of her career. From performing on the Oscars stage alongside the cas…","key_points":[],"chapters":[],"topics":[],"duration_seconds":4998,"processing_state":"not_requested","actions":[{"name":"request_transcript","method":"POST","url":"https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/pretty-tough-with-maria-sharapova-7814858/episodes/misty-copeland-never-wanted-to-stand-out-then-she-changed-ballet-forever/transcription-requests","description":"Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode."},{"name":"read_markdown","method":"GET","url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/pretty-tough-with-maria-sharapova-7814858/misty-copeland-never-wanted-to-stand-out-then-she-changed-ballet-forever.md","description":"Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource."}]}}