Joakim Noah: Endeavouring to carve out my unique legacy
The two-time NBA All-Star, who also represented the French national team during his career, discusses his post-retirement initiatives, advice on staying healthy, and why Let's Move celebrations for Olympic Day 2023 are so important.
Basketball
Joakim Noah knows a thing or two about keeping active and staying healthy: sport runs in his family.
The grandson of Cameroonian footballer Zacharie and French tennis star Yannick, the New York City-born Joakim played 13 seasons in the National Basketball Association.
"My father is probably one of my biggest influences in my life," Joakim Noah – who retired from the NBA in March 2021 – told Olympics.com in an interview from his gym ahead of Olympic Day 2023.
"He's a champion, he's somebody who does a lot of social work as well. I'm always very, very proud to have somebody who I can have a relationship with and be able to talk to and actually share some of his experiences."
That background with his father has helped Noah in more ways than one – it gave him an active lifestyle that saw him become a pro basketball player, and now in his post-retirement career, it's helping him forge a legacy.
Joakim Noah's post-retirement legacy
Just like his father engages in social work, Noah has been building an initiative in Chicago, where he played for the Bulls for a decade.
"Some of the most special moments in my career as an athlete were in that city," Noah recalled. "But it's also a place where there's a lot of division, a lot of violence.
"I wanted to use my platform to do things that were bigger than basketball."
The result? A project called One City.
"One City is a tournament that I created working with 28 violence prevention groups," Noah said. "These are relationships that I cured while I was playing, bringing guys to the games, and people were very appreciative of that.
"And now we're starting our own league that starts soon. I'm very, very excited to be a part of this.
"Obviously, this is a lot more than just getting talent. This is about bonding and curating relationships that only sports can bring together. So I'm very proud of this initiative."
Noah's other big project is his work with the NBA to help develop African basketball through the Basketball Africa League, or BAL, which concluded its third season in May.
"It's very important when you're done playing to keep your purpose to what and who you are," the Frenchman explained. "Africa always has a special place in my heart.
"Being able to work with the NBA closely, with the top leadership in building a league… This is season three right now. The BAL is something that's growing.
"I think we're still in the early stages right now, and we just have to keep growing and understanding that the social work is probably the most important work right now that we can do.
"Also building bridges, being able to use top talents or top coaching from Europe and from America and being able to bring them to Africa where the sky's the limit. There's unlimited potential."
Joakim Noah's exercise advice on how to stay active
With a family history in sport, it was no surprise that Noah picked up an active lifestyle and honed his talent to the extent he was able to turn pro.
"Having an active lifestyle has always kept me confident and (given) me discipline in my life," he recalled. "It gave me goals … always having dreams to becoming a basketball player and pushing myself every day to reach those goals was special."
Now 38, Noah has been retired from competitive sport for two years, but he remains active as is obvious on the day Olympics.com interviewed him in the gym.
"It's not about trying to be a champion anymore, but the health is just as important," Noah explained. "So the discipline, the things, the values that I learned growing up playing sports as a professional athlete are helping me in my everyday life in keeping a healthy lifestyle."
He admitted that he sometimes struggles to encourage himself to keep active – but always finds a way.
He said: "There's a lot of days that I'm not motivated to go to the gym and those are the days you have to push through. So I think discipline is even more important than motivation.
"You have to be disciplined to go to the gym every day, even on the days when you're sore and you don't want to."
However, there is a caveat. It's important to know your limits, Noah advised. "You also don't have to push yourself and have somebody push you too much. Just stay active, keep moving, and you'll feel good about yourself.
"And the more you do it, the easier it will be."
If you're just starting out in your journey to keep active or exercise regularly, Noah had this piece of advice: "Don't overdo it.
"Have the consistency to go in a little bit every day. One day you go for a walk, you know, the next thing you know, you might go for a little jog, the next day you might go to the gym and lift a little bit of weights.
"It's just a mentality that you have to have."
Joakim Noah wants you to join in with Let's Move on Olympic Day
The International Olympic Committee's Let's Move celebrations highlight Olympic Day (23 June), encouraging everyone to put 30 minutes in their calendar to move their body and get active.
"I think the Let's Move initiative is very important," Noah said, pointing out the realities of modern technology-driven life.
"You know, we're living in a time right now where people are on their phones all day; being active is not as important. And it's I think it's just important for us to raise that awareness so that the next generation understand the importance of (keeping active)."
Noah added: "My message to the young people is to stay active, to stay healthy. And there's so many different ways to do that. This is about self-discipline. It's not about somebody else always telling you what to do.
"It's about you taking the time for yourself and going to get it."