Colin Kaepernick discusses new memoir and continued NFL training in BBC interview

Colin Kaepernick continues to follow the fitness routine he used as an NFL quarterback while promoting a memoir about his life and the experiences behind his protest against racial injustice. In an interview published by BBC Sport on Tuesday, the former San Francisco 49ers player said he would make the same decision to protest again, despite believing it cost him his football career.

Watch the highlights: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OLgOmwEF3ZQ

Kaepernick, now 38, has published The Perilous Fight, which covers his upbringing in California after being adopted by a white family, his experiences of racism and the development of his views. He told the BBC that the decision to kneel was the product of years of personal reflection rather than an impulsive gesture. He said he hoped describing those experiences would help others facing difficult circumstances.

The interview is his first with BBC Sport since he began kneeling during the US national anthem in September 2016. Having initially protested by sitting, Kaepernick took a knee before a 49ers pre-season game and repeated the action before 11 regular-season games that year. His stated purpose was to challenge racial injustice and police brutality. Other NFL players joined the protest, while critics argued that it disrespected the military.

Kaepernick left his 49ers contract in March 2017 and did not sign with another NFL team. He subsequently filed a grievance alleging that team owners had conspired to keep him out of the league because of his protests. That dispute ended in a financial settlement in 2019. According to the BBC, he still maintains his former training regime in case an opportunity to return becomes available; the report did not identify an offer from a team.

He also discussed seeing England's men's and women's football teams take the knee, describing their participation as an unexpected and humbling development. The gesture spread across sport after George Floyd's murder in 2020. Kaepernick welcomed athletes using their positions to challenge racism while saying that discrimination remained a problem beyond the United States.

Away from football, his activities include supporting community organisations through the Know Your Rights education campaign and writing children's books. In the BBC interview, he acknowledged that he had understood the possible professional consequences of protesting. A decade later, he maintained that helping people and working towards a more equitable society remained central to his efforts.