Australian Institute of Sport

We are finally moving towards a national strategy on concussions in sport. Will the government and sports bodies now act?

Retrieved on:

onsdag, september 6, 2023

Senator Janet Rice, the committee chair, urged the government to take the report very seriously and quickly move to implement the recommendations.

Key Points:

Senator Janet Rice, the committee chair, urged the government to take the report very seriously and quickly move to implement the recommendations.
Our sports leagues have begun paying greater attention to the risks associated with concussions and mild traumatic brain injuries.
However, governments have been slow to act on repeated calls for a national strategy to what is fundamentally a public health concern.

Conflicting approaches to concussions

Two conflicting narratives emerged from the evidence.
On the one hand, athletes, families, health care professionals and other public interest groups expressed concern that the current approach on concussions and player safety was inadequate.
They argued there are too many gaps in the system and, in some cases, that sports organisations are putting self interest above player health.

Lack of reliable data on head injuries

One of the main concerns in the report was the lack of reliable and accurate data on the prevalence of concussions in sport and our general level of understanding on the health risks.
To address the data issue, the inquiry recommended the government establish a national sports injury database as a matter of urgency.
There is clear evidence of a causal link between repeated head trauma and
concussions and subsequent neurodegenerative diseases such as CTE.

‘High level of confusion’ on return-to-play rules

Other recommendations focus on how sporting codes should change their rules or policies to mitigate the risks of head injuries.
Read more:
New study highlights the brain trauma risks for young athletes
This is an important point.
The report cited concern over the “high level of confusion” over how much time a player should sit out, which comes from the disparate rules across sporting codes.

Inadequate support for athletes

The report made clear much more could be done by sporting organisations to improve their duty of care to athletes.
As a baseline, it “encourages” professional sports organisations to ensure their athletes have insurance coverage for head trauma and the removal of the exclusion of athletes from workers’ compensation regimes.
The goal here is to address the inequities in access to adequate support for professional athletes.

How do we keep women's football clean? Start paying players a fair wage

Retrieved on:

fredag, juli 28, 2023

The women’s Netball World Cup, which also took place in Australia that year, did not feature in its preparations because it was deemed “low risk”.

Key Points:

The women’s Netball World Cup, which also took place in Australia that year, did not feature in its preparations because it was deemed “low risk”.
By the time the FIFA Women’s World Cup was held in France in 2019, however, the football governing body was not taking any chances.
Many of these competitions lack key integrity protections like bet monitoring and athlete education, making them vulnerable targets for match-fixers.

Pay disputes in women’s football

For this year’s World Cup, several members of the Nigerian women’s team, the Super Falcons, were contemplating a boycott of their first match due to a pay dispute.
Nigeria’s opponent in its opening game, Canada, was also involved in a pay dispute with its federation, as were Jamaica and South Africa.

Why collective bargaining agreements are key

It took another four years before the Professional Footballers Australia, the players’ union, and Football Australia were able to sign a new collective bargaining agreement, which would guarantee an equal split of all commercial revenue between the men’s and women’s national teams.
The union believes this won’t address the inequity created by FIFA, which it could right with a stroke of the pen.
They have particularly highlighted the need for union representation and collective bargaining agreements that guarantee minimum standards and pay.
If these recommendations are implemented internationally, it will go a long way to supporting the women’s game and strengthening integrity.

Period shame stops countless girls from continuing sport. The Women’s World Cup can help break this stigma

Retrieved on:

onsdag, juli 12, 2023

New Zealand has also swapped out its traditional white shorts for teal blue to help combat period anxiety.

Key Points:

New Zealand has also swapped out its traditional white shorts for teal blue to help combat period anxiety.
The shame and taboo associated with periods stops many young girls from continuing sport, and misinformation about menstruation affects the performance and health of countless elite athletes.
The 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup is an opportunity to dispel period myths and put a focus on the specific needs of athletes who menstruate.

Women athletes aren’t small men

This research doesn’t consider the physical and psychological changes that women athletes may experience at each phase of the menstrual cycle, nor how that may affect peak performance.
Research into how the menstrual cycle affects the performance of women athletes is growing.

No longer a mark of honour

Overly intense training can cause some athletes to stop having periods.
This has often been considered normal by coaches and a mark of honour among athletes themselves.
Symptoms include periods stopping or becoming irregular, reduced performance, mood changes, and recurrent illnesses and injuries including stress fractures.

Change is happening, albeit slowly

For example, the Australian Institute of Sport launched an initiative in late 2019 to “improve female athlete specific knowledge and systems of support”.
Many women athletes themselves have started to speak up about the taboo associated with menstruation and are lobbying for change.
She’s now using her profile to raise awareness of women’s health issues and to try and reduce the taboo around periods.

Girls’ barriers to sport

Puberty, and the start of periods, is a time when girls’ participation in grassroots sport falls off sharply.
A UK survey of more than 4,000 teenagers published last year found there are complex barriers and deep-rooted negative attitudes affecting girls’ enjoyment of sport, including period shame and body image issues.
Various state governments are investing in grassroots sport facilities that better attend to the needs of women.

These can help girls and women be empowered to manage their periods in ways that will enable them to continue their participation and not feel ashamed or embarrassed. With the world cup media spotlight, we have an unprecedented opportunity to break menstrual shame, silence and taboo.

Genetics and concussion – why a minor knock can be devastating for some people

Retrieved on:

måndag, juni 19, 2023

While most people suffer acute and relatively short-lived effects, such as dizziness and headache, in some cases symptoms persist for weeks, months or years.

Key Points:

While most people suffer acute and relatively short-lived effects, such as dizziness and headache, in some cases symptoms persist for weeks, months or years.
Concussion in sport – from the junior to the elite level – is being prioritised as a public health concern in Australia.
The latest data show concussion can happen in nearly every sport, not just contact sports, with almost 3,100 hospitalisations for concussion caused by sports in 2020–21.

Traumatic brain injury

Concussion is a form of traumatic brain injury that can result in neurological dysfunction, including migraine, cognitive deficit, confusion, slowed reaction times, personality changes, drowsiness and emotional changes.
After brain injury there is a cascade of events that impacts the health of neurons and affects the flow of chemical ions, such as calcium, in the brain.
Read more:
Concussion: almost half of people still show signs of brain injury after six months

Other types of genes

Apart from a role for ion channel genes, there have been a number of additional genes linked by research to concussion.
Another genetic variation in the ApoE gene that makes it less productive has been linked to a higher likelihood of concussion.
Beyond ApoE, genes that help control a variety of brain functions have been suggested as factors in concussion – including some involved in neuronal growth, dopamine receptors and, most recently, brain axon (nerve fibre) development.

A predisposition for injury

Questions concerning the link between genetic predisposition to injury in sport are not new.
In 2016, the Australian Institute of Sport (AIS) released a position statement on the ethics of genetic testing and research in sport.
Athletes and support staff there are open to the idea of genetic information being used to improve sport performance and reduce injury risk.

What’s next?

Before introducing genetic testing, regulatory and governance frameworks would also need careful consideration.
She is a member of the Human Genetics Society of Australasia and Chair of the Board of Censors for Diagnostic Genomics.

USING FUSION SPORTS' SMARTABASE SOFTWARE, BARKER COLLEGE MATCHES AUSTRALIAN INSTITUTE OF SPORT AND NSW WARATAHS IN PLAYER PERFORMANCE OPTIMIZATION

Retrieved on:

onsdag, juni 8, 2022

BROOMFIELD, Colo., June 8, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Fusion Sport, an established global leader in tracking, analyzing and optimizing human performance, today announced it has teamed up with Barker College, an elite private school on Sydney's North Shore.

Key Points:

Like all Smartabase clients, Barker will configure the software, which aggregates, analyzes and visualizes player data.
"We are excited to partner with Barker College, known for its prestigious rugby program and academic prowess," said Dr. Markus Deutsch, Fusion Sport's CEO and co-founder.
"Organizations that invest in their athletes see a return in player availability and performance, along with measurable improvement over time.
An industry leader since 2003, Fusion Sport delivers results with a human performance optimization software platform that brings a constellation of performance datapoints together in Smartabase, a single, intelligent, highly configurable ecosystem.