‘BodyBreak’ host says iconic fitness series created to combat racism

Hal Johnson is speaking out about his experience with racism in Canada and how his long-running fitness series “BodyBreak” was created to help combat racism.

The television personality and co-host of “BodyBreak” posted a four-minute long YouTube video detailing his experience in Canadian media, including being hired as a sports reporter in 1988 but later the same day being told he was not getting the job because network executives did not want to have two Black reporters.

Johnson also described filming a commercial in Toronto alongside two white actors and said the white woman was told to sit beside the white man instead of himself.

Afterwards, when Johnson asked about the switch, he said he was told the client didn’t want him next to the white woman because they were worried people might think they had a romantic connection.

That afternoon, Johnson said he wrote out a storyboard trying to come up with solutions so everyone could live, work and play together and was inspired to create “BodyBreak.”

The concept was met with a lot of rejection. Johnson and Joanne McLeod pitched “BodyBreak” to 42 different companies, all of them turned it down.

One producer loved the idea of the show, but Johnson said he was told the Canadian public was not ready for a black and white couple, and the show could proceed, if a white man was used instead.

After trying to figure out who to call next, Johnson said he and McLeod tried ParticipACTION, a federal government program for healthy living.

Within a short period of time, they had a contract for six episodes. “BodyBreak” went on to become a staple for many Canadians, producing 65 episodes.

Johnson told CityNews why he decided to share his story now, “I think mainly, people are ready to listen. I think before, people didn’t think there was much of a problem and people weren’t listening.”

He said since he posted the video online, he has received an overwhelming response, but the work isn’t finished yet.

Johnson wants to see more people of colour, people with disabilities and women in Canadian media and sports.

“That’s what ‘BodyBreak’ was all about. Showing that everyone, regardless of your gender, regardless of your ethnicity, regardless of your ability, we can all live, work and play together.”

“Everyone, regardless of your gender, regardless of your ethnicity, regarding of your ability, we can all live, work and play together.”

A day after he shared his story, one of the networks named in the video issued an apology reading, in part, “We apologize to Hal Johnson for the racism he experienced at TSN beginning in 1988, a shameful part of our past, and thank him for sharing his story as a reminder of the impact of racism in Canadian media that continues today. We recognize that even 30 years later, there is still much work to do to improve our commitment to on-air and editorial diversity.”

“We’re not bitter,” Johnson told CityNews when asked about that statement. “I have no bitterness, no animosity. They didn’t need to do it, it’s just something that happened, and I was just telling the journey.”