Sam Alipour, who grew up in Danville and Pleasanton, has signed a multiyear contract to remain with ESPN as a senior reporter and as host of the popular “SportsCenter” series “Hang Time,” it was announced Thursday.
In “Hang Time,” Alipour is granted extraordinary access to, and revealing interviews with, sports stars as they partake in their hobbies and realize their off-field dreams in unique settings. His latest piece was with Warriors forward Draymond Green eating sushi and walking the streets of Tokyo.
Alipour, who graduated from San Ramon Valley High School, has hiked to the famous “Hollywood” sign with Los Angeles Rams — and former Cal — quarterback Jared Goff, swam with sharks in the Bahamas with New England Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski, experienced cryotherapy with Warriors guard Stephen Curry, and much more.
“Sam has the ability to create unique content by putting interesting people into settings that are out of the ordinary,” said Michael Shiffman, ESPN Vice President, Content Strategy, SportsCenter and News. “The resulting pieces not only make fans smile but also help them learn things about athletes he’s hanging with. Sam’s content appeals to a wide variety of sports fans and helps contribute to audience growth across ESPN platforms.”
A native of Tehran, Iran, Alipour immigrated to the United States as a child, eventually settling with his family in the Bay Area. Upon joining ESPN in 2006 as a contributor, Alipour served as an entertainment reporter and columnist for The Magazine and ESPN.com. He went on to become a reporter for “SportsCenter” with on-air roles that included NBA Playoffs correspondent and appearances on a variety of other ESPN programs.
“One great perk of ‘Hang Time,’ if I may go the selfish route, is I get to travel the world and do exciting and sometimes scary things that push me to my limits,” Alipour said in a press release issued by ESPN.
“But in doing so I get to see athletes in a natural environment,” he added. “I get to tell unique stories about really interesting people in settings that you don’t normally get to see them in. And what that does is peel the layers back for you.”
Alipour graduated magna cum laude with honors from UCLA and holds a bachelor’s degree in mass media communication. He lives in Los Angeles.