Headfirst: A Concussion Podcast

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Sam has spent over two decades in sports journalism and is widely recognised for his work in rugby and athlete welfare. He led what was, at the time, a groundbreaking media campaign on concussion in rugby, earning a nomination for the Cudlipp Prize in 2014. Among his many accolades—including nominations for Rugby Journalist of the Year and Investigative Reporter of the Year—Sam is also the author of the award-winning book Concussed: Sport's Uncomfortable Truth, which won the Pinsent Masons Sports Writing Award and was shortlisted for the William Hill Sports Book of the Year.
 
01:10 - How Was Concussed: Sport's Uncomfortable Truth Received
04:48 – Concussion Advocacy
11:15 – Ethical Codes: Example ‘Blood Gate’
15:30 – Strategies of Conveying a Clear Message 
20:00 – Return to Learn and Life 
22:20 – How the Public Receive the Message 
25:30 – Litigation Against World Rugby 
33:35 – Favorited Moments from Sport & Journalism 
 
Twitter/x: @plantedSam 
https://www.concussed.media
  
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Owen’s work focuses on the neuropsychological mechanisms underpinning sports-related traumatic brain injury. His research explores how concussion impacts functional behaviour, cognition, and broader mental health and well-being.
Prelude to a Crisis: A History of Sports-Related Concussion Research and the Influence of Neuropsychology, co-authored with Jamie Schultz. 

01:15 - Sports History and Concussion
08:00 - Biocultural Perspective in Sports-Related Concussion.
13:25 - History and Emergence of Neuropsychology in Concussion
17:25 – The SLAM Model
21:30 – Divergence of Concussion and Time Points Pre/Pots Bennet Omalu
26:00 - What Has ‘Concussion Crisis’ History Taught Us  
28:00 – Addressing Concussion as an Athlete and Researcher on Concussion 
31:20 – How to Convey the Message Regarding Concussion
35:22 - Favourite Moment’s in Sport 
39:45 - Where Can People Find You and Help Your Research
 
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Dr Grashow is a senior research scientist at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health and Director of Epidemiological Research Initiatives for the Football Players Health Study at Harvard University. Her work focuses on the long-term health effects of sport—particularly concussion and repetitive head impacts—in elite athletes.
 01:50 – Pretext: What is Concussion and CTE
03:20 - Participation in Professional American-Style Football and Suicide Mortality: 1979–2019: Reasoning behind looking at this data
05:50 – Main Findings of The Study
10:50 –Stigma of Concussion and Mental Health Challenges
12:30 – Trends and Explanation Between Sports
17:00 – Caregiver Burden and Effect on Wife’s 
21:00 – Frequent Concerns and Reports from Caregivers 
25:00 – Advantages and Disadvantages of Studying Professional Athlete Population
28:00 – Assessing and Data Collection of Caregivers
33:30 –Testosterone Levels in Athletes  
Episode 82: Perceived Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy and Suicidality in Former Professional Football Players (NFL) With Dr Rachel Grashow
 
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Henry Perenara played over 70 matches in the NRL at club level and also represented New Zealand internationally. Following his playing career, he transitioned into officiating, making his first-grade refereeing debut in 2011. He went on to officiate more than 200 matches, including international fixtures such as the Four Nations and the Rugby League World Cup. 

01:10 - Henry Perenara Journey into Rugby League
05:10 – Hardest Part Transitioning Form a Player to Referee
11:00 – Man Management of Players and the Media
13:10 – What Was Expected of a Referee Regarding Player Welfare
16:10 – Difficulty of Making Split Second Decisions 
20:00 – Transitioning from Two Referee’s to One in Covid-19
25:50 – Impact and Toll of Covid-19 Season 
32:15 – Differences Between Refereeing Club vs World Cup
37:05 – How Does the Bunker Work
40:36 – Favourite Moments as a Player and Referee 
42:45 – Henry’s Heart Condition and Where to Find Him
 
Henry Perenara 
https://www.smartmove.com.au/our-team/henry-perenara/
 
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Welcome back to Headfirst: A Concussion Podcast, today we have the honour and privilege to welcome Chris Cannon. 
Chris is the General Manager of M2MMA, a combat sports organisation using artificial intelligence to improve athlete wellbeing across physical, psychological, and financial domains. A key focus is reducing major risks in the sport—particularly weight cutting and concussion (mild traumatic brain injury), which is the focus of today’s discussion.

01:14 - Chris’s Journey into M2MMA 
05:50 - What is M2MMA & How is AI involved?
08:52 – What Data is Being Collected?
13:40 – Protection of Data
14:50 – Athlete Perception’s to Data Collection
18:00 – Examples of Data Collection
20:40 – Understanding the Whole Issue
26:45 – Outside Perception on AI Tracking from Other Sports
30:45 – Chris’s Favourite Sporting Moment and Moving Forward in Sport

M2MMA: 
Website: https://m2mma.com
IG: @m2mmaofficial and @cccannon10
Facebook: M2MMA Official
 
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