Earlier this week American cyclist Tejay van Garderen announced he has withdrawn his name from Olympic selection over concerns for his pregnant wife. I decided to have a look at what the actual risks are for athletes and fans a like traveling to Rio this August. The Zika virus was first discovered in 1947 and […]
Could doping help our obesity pandemic?
Last year a provocative paper by Professor Marcora suggested that psychoactive drugs could be used to help lazy people exercise.1 At the time of reading this paper I felt that the idea was ridiculous and completely unethical. Four months on, I’ve had time to reflect on the idea and now believe that it has some […]
Is cardiac screening the answer?
Recently we saw the unfortunate retirement of English cricket international James Taylor. During a pre-season fixture, he felt ill and was taken to hospital were a scan identified arrhythmogenic right ventricular cardiomyopathy (ARVC). Such conditions can be exacerbated by exercise and potentially cause sudden death. A similar heart condition led to the on-pitch collapse of […]
The fear of returning to sport after an injury
Whether you’re a professional athlete representing your country or a weekend warrior playing for your local social team, there is a good chance that at some point in your athletic career you’ll end up being injured. For most athletes an injury is simply a physical event which prevents them from participating in their chosen activity, […]
Are concussion guidelines good for elite sport
On the 3rd of November 2013 Tottenham played out a scoreless draw against Everton. From the result you may think it was an uneventful game. However, a collision between Tottenham’s goalkeeper Hugo Lloris and Everton’s striker Romelu Lukaku sparked widespread criticism of Tottenham’s medical staff. Late in the game Hugo Lloris was knocked unconscious when […]
