New York- with the recent massive win of the Knicks and the ongoing World Cup and other sports events, Shamekka Marty brings to light an aspect not a lot of companies refer to: the health after the events. She offers a fresh focus on how entertainment, health, and the sports world work together.
Marty is part of the new media landscape that focuses beyond sports games; in-depth looks to assist clients and players with health. As an entrepreneur and health advocate, she continues to raise awareness of the hardships in a world where sports meet entertainment and become the environment we experience.
Now an activist, advocate, and sports media figure, Shamekka Marty has demonstrated wide knowledge and experience in health, sports, and entertainment. With a strong record, she was recognized and awarded by the Sequoia Project in 2023 for her hard work.
Despite her big accomplishments, it wasn’t always like that. From a young age, Shamekka had to take care of her loved ones, from her grandma, who suffered from arthritis, to her mom, who struggled with lupus. This made her learn about the importance of health and advocacy very early on, but in the midst of it, she was also surrounded by sports, occasionally accompanying her dad to his job in Atlantic City, which was related to boxing. She also grew up as a regular attendee at 76ers games and had a strong passion for softball.
She also grew up surrounded by entrepreneurs; her family has had, and continues to have, a strong presence in the music industry. But the first time she realized the crossover between entertainment and sports was when she observed the All-Star Games, where entertainment becomes sports.
Shamekka also says, “Everything in sports is entertainment”, regarding how sports and the entertainment world meet.
Eventually, when she got into corporate, she declared, “I felt something was missing, I wanted my professional and personal life to align, because it wasn’t the same […] also I just noticed there were a lot of people to say or do whatever, to imitate them. Imitation is the best form of flattery. And I put together that these athletes need help, and we need help. How can I bridge this together?” After discussing with a friend, she decided to found Beyond the Game Health, a platform that transforms the influence of sports into meaningful progress for health equity and community strength.
Health in sports has been highlighted worldwide lately. For example, the International Olympic Committee published an article last year on the importance of partnership in sports and health, discussing recent initiatives by the WHO and the IOC to integrate health and sports.
A blog post made by Desconstructing stigma establishes that a study made in 2019, “found that about 35% of elite athletes have mental health concerns“, just proving the importance of having a platform like Beyond The Game Health.
When asked about Love Morales, Sports Events & Partnerships Intern at Beyond the Game Health, says, “She [Shamekka] is always trying to do the best for the people that work for her.
She also describes her as someone who “ is always trying to be there to create spaces [to discuss] how to change the system. I think she is […] someone who is very ongoing, a problem-solver. When she sees a problem, she tries to address it, not with the mentality of this problem sucks, it’s more like “okay, we know this is how it works, so how can we fix it?” And not on an individual, but as a group”.
As the worlds of sports, entertainment, and health become increasingly interconnected, Shamekka Marty is helping redefine what success in sports should look like. Through Beyond the Game Health, she is pushing conversations beyond wins, championships, and headlines to focus on the long-term well-being of athletes and communities. Drawing from personal experiences, entrepreneurial vision, and a commitment to advocacy, Marty has built a platform that addresses gaps often overlooked in the sports industry. Her work demonstrates that the impact of sports extends far beyond the final score. If you want to know more about her, you can find her on Instagram at @prettysicklupuschick.
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