The hidden reason Olympic sledding is so dangerous

“Sled head” is about more than just crashes.
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In recent years, the sliding community - made up of skeleton, bobsleigh, and luge athletes - has experienced a spate of brain injury-related tragedy. At first glance, the reason why seems obvious: Sleds regularly reach speeds that top 90 miles per hour, and crashes are unfortunately very common.
But there is growing research that shows it might be the act of sledding itself that is the main driver of brain injury. With every run, athletes are exposed to immense force and vibration, causing micro-concussions that can ultimately add up to major damage. Those concussions are mild enough that they can go undiagnosed. But among sledding athletes the symptoms that indicate a micro-concussion - headaches, dizziness, etc. - are so common they have a special nickname, “sled head.”
There’s a lot science still doesn’t know about sled head and the brain in general. But from what we can tell, it’s pretty clear that sliding sports put the brain health of athletes at risk.
Further reading:
When researching this piece, I spoke with the German skeleton team’s coach, Mark Wood. He’s working with Christina and Peter to push for research and regulation that might protect sliding athletes in the future. He wrote a great essay sharing his perspective on the sport and its dangers here: / head-first-safe-the-sp...
Peter, Christina, Mark and neuropsychologist Aliyah Snyder are currently developing a survey surrounding sliding athlete's concussion and injury histories. It's not yet available, but if you’re a current or former sliding athlete looking to find out more, email [e-mail]
For a review of the literature on sled head see: www.frontiersi...
Matthew Futterman at the New York Times is one of the only reporters writing extensively on sled head. Check out his work to learn more:
www.nytimes.co...
www.nytimes.co...
www.nytimes.co...
www.nytimes.co...
Christina Smith has a book coming out about her experiences recovering from a brain injury, you can preorder it here: authorchristin...
This is the fifth and last of our themed videos for winter sports week at Vox! The first three videos were about ski jump, speed skating, and women's Olympic monobob. Check out the playlist here: bit.ly/3oESqgx
The fourth video highlights a ski lodge trapped in a border dispute on the Alps. Watch here: • The Italy-Switzerland ...
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[@Vox]

Preliminary research on the q-collar, conducted on high school athletes, indicates it can go a long way in mitigating the damage of repeated brain injuries. If you’re interested in learning more, check out: www.fda.gov/news-events/press-announcements/fda-authorizes-marketing-novel-device-help-protect-athletes-brains-during-head-impacts Thanks for watching. -Marie

[@merrisol]

,,

[@VirtousStoic]

These sports should simply be removed from the winter Olympics. No helmet will fix this damage. Or at the least all these sled athletes need to be educated on sled head before they get into the sport

[@youvebeenmilked2893]

@Angie S hey there, I wrote a reply to a comment about “sled head” concussion syndrome that you replied to also. Read if you’re interested.

[@VirtousStoic]

boxers mma football player know full well what the damage is and the risks and the conclusions. The athlete in the video said "I never got a concussion so I never knew all this could happen" and she was the best of the best. Had the best doctors and so on. And she didn't know. the issue is educated decisions based on actual risks don't exist in this sport. Because tbey think well the risk is crashing leading to concussion or injury to limbs. When as this video creator showed is the vibrations. living our life doesn't cause the vibrations this sport does. I never reply to comments to avoid trolls. But I am sorry you are not actually discussion or listening to facts. You are debating against your own self and your own thouhts and beleifs instead of this video and my comment. I won't reply anymore. Watch the will Smith football movie and you will see what happens when the risks of sport are hidden from athletes

[@youvebeenmilked2893]

Oh okay, got it. Maybe I misunderstood, thanks!

[@apadgettski]

I did a run down a bobsled on wheels in Whistler and it was the most jarring experience of my life. The throbbing headache lasted all day just from one run. This stuff is the real deal, coming from someone who has had concussions before.

[@karupt422]

I was in whistler and stayed in the presidential suite. It rocked.

[@ilhamrj2599]

ouch... wondering was that helmet even helped at all

[@TheAnimale]

@@ilhamrj2599 The helmet might not stop concussions but it will stop your skull from being cracked in half

[@soulawaken24]

@@ilhamrj2599 Helmets don't protect you from concussions directly. Concussion is the injury to your brain being rocked about on the INSIDE of your skull. Helmets provides you protection from external injuries, i.e. getting hit on the OUTISDE of your skull. That's why concussions are dangerous, because there's not a lot you can do to protect yourself in the process, except not taking part in the activity.

[@derAtze]

@@soulawaken24 i mean, partly both. The helmet provides additional cushioning and spreads out the impact over a larger area, so on the one hand it reduces risk of concussion and on the other hand risk of skull breaking

[@volteskai]

As a breakdancer who has been noticing memory loss, this is eye opening and I'm wondering if this research has any implications on other lesser known sports.

[@Yvaelle]

I would say anything that applies to brain injury in other sports potentially also applies to you.

[@jponz85]

I'd love to learn please teach me I'll pay lol

[@volteskai]

@@jponz85 I'll get back to you once I learn how to protect my brain lol

[@yourheartisamusclethesizeo2003]

@@nexustom5823 unnecessary

[@abnormallynormal8823]

I was a stagehand for 10 years, and the number of times I’ve hit my head on a 2” steel pipe that flew in behind me is uncountable. I’d usually brush it off with a passive comment like ‘eh, I’ve been hit in the head by worse’ and continue working. I’m only 26, but I’m already noticing that I’m having trouble staying focused, and this video gave me a worrying look at the future

[@imadrachidi2736]

I still remember Nodar Kumaritashvili's death during his last practice hours before the opening ceremony in 2010. Even his teammate chose to withdraw to attend the funeral. One of those sad and tragic moments at sports.

[@nj2526]

His nephew Saba was 9 when this happened. Saba qualified and just competed at the Beijing Olympics in honour of his uncle.

[@purplerabbit638]

I remember that incident so vividly. The video was brutal

[@catinthemoonlight]

I remember listening to a podcast how the American football players frequently retire and find long lasting brain damage troubling their lives and there's lots of money from the industry thrown at silencing people who want to bring attention to this issue. I can imagine micro concussion is even more of an issue which gets even less press. Thanks for raising people's awareness.

[@sapphire3718]

the disorder is called CTE - chronic traumatic encephalopathy

[@condorX2]

Just like opioid. People will forget the next day.

[@sauercrowder]

Not sure what you were watching but the silencing aspect is far less true today. It is talked about a great deal, there are new protocols in the game, and a lot of discussion around the age kids should be able to start playing tackle, etc. I would not be surprised though if the medical community basically says that this doesn't make it safe and if that is being suppressed.

[@Mote78]

Maybe brain damage may explain why some well paid athletes go broke and are homeless soon after retirement. Look at Iron Mike Webster. A great guy with 18 years in the NFL yet in less than 10 years after playing he was a broken man physically, mentally and financially. Now sledding too? We’re in an enlightenment. Thank goodness.

[@condorX2]

@@Mote78 👍

[@tiger4thewin]

I was literally thinking about this watching how many luge athletes fell yesterday. Thanks for the timely Winter Olympics videos, Vox!

[@VanSanProductions]

This sport is really cool. Maybe we can make it like VR thing.

[@willypro4949]

Essentially, this a sport that needs motorsports like suspension and protection systems and it doesn't have them, they should look into upgrading their systems

[@Zestric]

This almost feels like the progression in motorsports we've had so far going from seatbelts to helmets to the HANS.

[@alexandermallinckrodt2847]

Suspension on Skeleton and Luge would be even more dangerous. You’d lose the feel for the sled which increases the likelihood of crashes. The IBSF knows about all this stuff, as do the athletes. It’s a risk. If you watch an F1 car they still get similar relative levels of vibrations to Skeleton or Luge even with their suspension.

[@karl.t.d.]

But these protective systems also add weight, so it may take a while until it gets implemented

[@Tiwack01]

@@alexandermallinckrodt2847 You wouldn't lose any feel, you'd experience a different feel and have to adapt accordingly, they go so fast they have memorize the track anyway, suspension would help altogether.

[@magiricod]

@@alexandermallinckrodt2847 so why can't they use a mips style helmet to help with the vibrations and hits dulling the rotation of the skull

[@jfarmerswatermelon6061]

Georgian luge athlete Nodar Kumaritashvili suffered a fatal crash during a training run for the 2010 Winter Olympics on the day of the opening ceremony.

[@diaxdiax]

that’s so tragic story in Georgian sport history 🇬🇪

[@Jesse__H]

Yeah I remember that. He flew straight into a steel support beam. Tragic.

[@dadaguiar]

i remember watching this live, it was so jarring. that track was not well made.

[@nitskatsomaia2706]

Saba kumaritashvili,his cousin competed at this olympics ❤️

[@logan_page]

Yeah, because of a poorly constructed track.

[@cromwellcruz]

i can't believe my friend remarked sledding sports is so easy because" you just push then ride and the gravity does the work for you "

[@TK-gd9td]

If it was that easy for your friend he would be world renown multiple gold medal winner by now.

[@terryarmbruster9719]

Technically hes correct physics wise as work in physics is what one would do vs gravity. Lol old school physics joke most uneducated people dont get.

[@TeKaMOTO]

A lot of people like to say the same about motocross. "How do you get tired riding a motorcycle?! You just twist the throttle and the bike does all the work for you!"

[@RaymondHng]

Does your friend think that one just saws a bow back and forth across a violin and music comes out?

[@bobbobbinson1841]

I think you friend meant "sledding is easy COMPARED to some other sports because you just ride a sled down a hill." THIS Is still a true statement. I guarantee 90% of you all could ride a bobsled. you would be slow... you might fall off... But you WILL get to the bottom with little practice. and there are places where you can do it today. but 99% of you will NEVER be able to ,for example, pole vault without tons of practice first. this is what that gentlemen was meaning to say.

[@valciobanu]

Very interesting. How come there’s no dampening system on those sleds? I’m sure the technology is there. Hydraulic or even foam shocks can be very effective I believe.

[@dr_jj]

Without knowing the danger, speed probably was the main priority for all parties in the sport. Knowing that there are researches being done, I hope some safety measures will be put in place, but sliding sports in general isn't as popular and doesn't have much monetary power for infrastructure unlike NFL or F1 so... who knows :/

[@LawnPygmy]

Money.

[@zee9709]

Athlete health in later years is an afterthought

[@mitchek6509]

Thinking back on the ones I've ridden they really didn't have much but the entire deck of the sled is made of a heavy foam

[@christopherharvie8716]

Speed. It’d slow them down dramatically. Let’s face it who goes into those sports with safety bring their highest priority?

[@NoName-vb2ez]

Just a suggestion....Sledding(in any form) should look to Formula 1 auto racing for the inspiration to make the sport safer. The leaps and bounds inherent to F1 safety are primary to any race and could be brought over to sledding e.g. HANS System, Halo, and even a five/six point restraint along with some form of suspension, just look at mountain biking; in particular Downhill Mountain Biking(front and rear suspension) along with advancements in smart Lycra race outfits, again just my observations in these athletic sports. (and yes F1 racing is a true sport with all the parameters of being an Athlete(just research their physical and mental training)....🤖

[@affectedrl5327]

I was thinking the same adding a suspension shouldnt be that difficult and would massively reduce the vibrations

[@mikeblatzheim2797]

@@affectedrl5327 That would however raise the centre of gravity and make the sled less predictable, therefore reducing the ability to control the sled. Something like a HANS device would probably be enough to inhibit most of the head movement.

[@NoName-vb2ez]

@@mikeblatzheim2797 We also need to consider; the layman' terms of pressure (G-Force, both latitude and longitude on the participants of the sport. High pressure or G' are a contributing fracturing in the various sledding sports as they have a very physical effect on not just performance but has been discussed in this thread the mental state of the Athlete. To get to the crux of the matter this is the most probably (and the most simple "Occam's razor" of explanation of the matter), the forces in general are not met to be experienced by the most even top elite athlete....Sledding in all its form is dangerous as is Space Flight. It is because of an increasing understanding of the sport that we coming to this conclusion....IT'S LIKE SO MANY HUMAN ENDEAVOURS VERY DANGEROUS....this again is just my own opinion and observation....🤖

[@Varuga]

There is no money in sledding. There is going to be zero funding for any of those things. Unless they can make sledding more accessible for public entertainment, no one is going to care.

[@austinkylereid]

it is called the H.A.N.S device (Head And Neck reStraint)

[@micahkiyimba8641]

OMG, it seems like she has C.T.E...She described the symptoms an it makes lots of sense since she was in a fast sport and likely sustained many hits to her head that jostled her brain a lot. This is common in Boxing, Soccer, Rugby and NFL.

[@amazingabby25]

Even baseball from sliding into home plate

[@aeway_]

I think she knows lol

[@dawsonharris5498]

Brain injuries are just plain scary to think about. I suffered a concussion in 2012, then a very minor one in 2015. Summer of 2021 I started having debilitating headaches. Doctor thought I might be experiencing post-concussion syndrome but by the time I could get into an office for a brain scan the symptoms had completely stopped and the neurologist said it was possible but he couldn't be certain and would need to do a scan when the headaches were happening to pinpoint what was going on.

[@EmperorGoliaththeEverliving]

@@dawsonharris5498 I would think he would at least want a scan at that point for comparison's sake as what you were at that point. As was shown in the video, I think that scan was while she did not have any symptoms.

[@dawsonharris5498]

@@EmperorGoliaththeEverliving I still got the scan. Neurologist said everything looked normal at that time. But that's the thing about our brains is we just really still don't know, but we keep learning more every year

[@Fortzon]

You'd think after HANS device became mandatory in F1 and many other motorsports 20 years ago after the death of Dale Earnhardt Sr., the other sports regulatory bodies would have started developing their own version. I'll bet they could've made HANS device work for bobsleighs but concussion sensors and virtual training and cushions are the next best thing.

[@skaldlouiscyphre2453]

I'm not sure a HANS would protect racers against the equivalent to this in motorsports so it's possible that other sports might only be able to manage this risk, not eliminate it. The HANS device is for basal fractures and it works by isolating that Achilles heel from the forces, but this issue might be more a matter of how the soft tissue responds while under g-forces, which is somewhat harder to control. By analogy: you can hold a bucket full of water upright in the back of a pickup truck while it bounces on a rough road and maybe keep it from spilling but if the driver pulls the handbrake and spins the truck you might not keep the water from sloshing over the top, even if you've protected it from all the other types of forces that it's been subjected to.

[@ian2000]

I'm trying to figure out how someone gets into this sport.

[@maxbrinkrode7411]

do you have any connection to the sport? Also, anywhere near snow, cold weather, a bobsled run?

[@jonathanjadotte]

$

[@miha_ity]

This and ski jumping...imagine the first day in ski jumping, it's not like basketball where coach goes"here kids have a ball shoot some hoops" :)))

[@DeepValueOptions]

Brain damage like foot ball

[@kingarcthurus1049]

@@maxbrinkrode7411 it’s more then that very few countries even have the facilities for bobsleigh luge etc

[@Sssilk84]

I love these kinds of research videos. Getting new knowledge about a topic o would probably never think of looking up. Thanks Vox!

[@fabio.lous_]

Those behind the scenes from the lasts videos are just too good!! Keep doing them please!!

[@impatrickt]

Its all Bob’s fault.

[@cala-mm8ho]

Yeah, Bob's led them totally down the wrong track, hasn't he?

[@impatrickt]

@@cala-mm8ho LOL

[@keirfarnum6811]

Bob’s your uncle.

[@whocareswins1]

“Your bones won’t break in a bobsled… oh no… they shatter!” - Irving Blitzer

[@TheBillaro]

Cool Runnings

[@techgirl7516]

Georgian Sportsman died while competing at Vancouver Olympics (He was participating in luge). Everything happened live...

[@karenmacdonald6190]

I remember that. The worst part was the news showed it again and again afterward.

[@techgirl7516]

@@karenmacdonald6190 yes🥺

[@ToyaF82]

Most of the Winter Olympic sports look dangerous 😳

[@UrsaMajorPrime]

Well, they do take place on the slipperiest of surfaces.....

[@d00mpirate]

Vox- Please do a segment on Valieva the figure skater. I feel like her situation requires your investigative journalism skills. Her coach is known to be abusive. Russia is known for doping and trying to win at any cost. I feel like there is a can of worms just waiting to spill, and I'd love to learn more about whats going on behind the scenes.

[@ethantomkins1206]

Been playing Mario and Sonics Winter Olympic Games for years and I've NEVER crashed.

[@dankdungeon5104]

cracked

[@skyejamss]

This is an amazing documentary

[@HairyKnees1]

I’ve had plenty of rough falls that probably caused damage (off horses, bikes, trees, rooftops, while skiing, and more), but the worst concussion I’ve ever had was slipping at the top of my very steep stairs! I came to at the bottom, and couldn’t even move without feeling like puking. For some reason I can’t fathom, at the time I vehemently refused to go to the doctor, even though I had a bad concussion and a potentially broken arm!

[@LeahLaushway]

That would be the shock.

[@mfree80286]

I'm surprised that nobody has taken noise reducing headsets and "gone heavy" with them... placing lightweight but powerful electromagnetic transducers on the helmets, with fast accelerometers that "read" vibrations and simply push the helmet the other way. There would be some loss of effectiveness through the padding, but it would still reduce the overall magnitude of a vibration. NHRA Top Fuel is another sport where vibration and G forces can end careers early, and in at least one instance lives. From nerve issues to detached retinas on the low end, up to a resonance issue with a chassis undergoing deflating tire shake ending the life of Eric Medlin in 2007 from diffuse axonal injury.

[@simongentry]

hardly hidden! massive speed, head hits side, bad for head - similar to american football head injury.

[@madboyreadynow28]

I remember a few years ago watching this guy fly off the track into a wall and died at the Olympics doing the luge.

[@ebiskner]

Good video, little disappointed that “g-force” wasn’t better explained since it’s more than just magnitude of g’s, duration and orientation are significantly more a factor than the magnitude of g’s. For example the body takes g’s best perpendicular, like laying down, and for short periods of time “instantaneous g”, and the body handles inverted g’s the worse and for any time longer than a few seconds. As I said good video, just would like to see g-force better explained.

[@SanderAnderon]

seeing the Whistler track brings back bad memories of the Georgian luger who died there during 2010 Oly practice run, RIP

[@your_avg_joe]

Whose watching this after seeing all the crashes in luge & skiing runs today in Beijing? It's frightening that even without crashing there can be so much damage done - almost as frightening as the courses each having one spot where multiple Olympic athletes crashed today.

[@vasilerogojan4520]

Another interesting video. Thanks. I'm waiting for another interesting topics on this channel as usual.

[@oshkrh]

If someone wants to do more research in the area, look up chronic traumatic encephalopathy. I haven't looked into the papers on sled head but it sounds like that to me

[@yasu3d]

Correction about rollercoasters : The average G-Force experienced on a rollercoaster is ~3.5G Some reach the high 4s and some do hit 5 but most stay around 3.5

[@Jamesfrancosdog]

Cite your sources!

[@chipweather]

5 is enough to blackout a normal person. So its rarely seen on roller coasters and if they are seen, only for a second or less. You are totally correct

[@ManaSura_]

I understand how a huge industry like american football is impossible to put a stop to, due to all the different financial gain, but to find out that such a minor and unpopular sport (sorry but that's how i regard it personally) can not just be banned altogether, is mind-boggling. Honestly why people choose to invest themselves in such dangerous and physically damaging sports is beyond me.

[@CjYaranon]

I think we are treading a very steep path here... The question is how do we push the limits of 'faster, higher, stronger' without alienating human life?

[@garycole520]

We are already living in the age of extremism and hyper self gratification .

[@dr.nightmare9093]

This made me think. Could resting your head on the bus' window on your daily commute be harmful on the long run in a similar way to this?

[@xen2125]

I don’t think so, unless of course your bus is moving at the same speed as a sled.

[@dr.nightmare9093]

@@xen2125 not cuz of speed but cuz of bumpy road/old bus/both

[@kxng16]

Penguins: goes sliding down an avalanche everytime without problem Humans: hey that looks fun, let's try it Also humans: why is this so hard and dangerous for us but not for penguins? Penguins: Haha bobsled go brrrr brrrr

[@Apjooz]

Maybe these athletes should be fatter.

[@jalenad11]

Padded neck restraints made like a HANS device would help a ton. It would absorb lots of the energy in side to side movements.

[@mastervz4806]

Thanks Vox. Keeping my kids away from this even though I don’t know a single person who’s ever done this. But cool runs was awesome.

[@logan_page]

The only public Luge track in America is in Muskegon MI and it’s nearly impossible to go above 30 mph on it, even if you’re a world class athlete. I’d recommend giving it a try if you’re in the area, as at those speeds there really isn’t any danger. In fact the most common injury there is slipping on your way up the stairs 😂

[@exzelzo]

And an F1 driver going through this torture in weekly basis. All of that G pulls and vibration inside the car going the speed of 300 km/h...

[@timverelst1471]

Karting drivers are worse

[@fh5kskalf]

This makes the other recent Vox video, about diversity in sledding sports, seem really weird.

[@jevinday]

great video! I had no idea about these issues. I always thought bobsledding looked like so much fun. I was a 90s kid so we all wanted to bobsled after we watched Cool Runnings haha

[@leangrypoulet7523]

Same problem in professional rugby. Early onset dementia, not from one or two heavy concussive impacts (head on head in a tackle), but from hundreds of micro concussions in training and during matches during scrummaging, rucking, mauling, and of course tackling. Our brains simply aren’t designed for repetitive rattles or impacts.

[@aturtlu2013]

This is incredibly helpful, thank you for sharing this.

[@srivatsanlakshminarayanan8808]

My head(brain) hurt after seeing this

[@Visionery1]

This type of injury first became apparent in boxing, then soccer/rugby, now bobsledding - all subject the brain to trauma not usually experienced as a hunter/gatherer. Traumatic brain injuries cause irreversible, worsening damage with a sad final outcome. I'm starting to wonder how sports like bungee jumping affect the brain.

[@thoma5peter5en]

A(nother) great video - had no idea regarding the micro concussions. This left me with another question; what about professional boxers? How does professional boxing effect the brain?

[@THIS---GUY]

Look up cte

[@ryanboscoe9670]

This makes me think I need a brain scan. Maybe my depression, fatigue, anxiety and constant nausea is caused by my 11 years playing rugby league. I was knocked out 5 or 6 times, and god only knows how many times I received a concussion, atleast in the 40 or 50's.

[@bigjd2k]

Could the ice be smoothed really well, to avoid most of the vibrations? Perhaps a machine with a heater which goes down the run and rapidly melts the surface then allows it to refreeze, evening out the highest peaks on the surface layer.

[@EmyrDerfel]

That would probably make the tracks even faster, increasing the frequency of any vibration.

[@xliquidflames]

Micro concussions from moving the head too quickly are a thing? Well, that explains a lot. All that headbanging I did to heavy metal music in the 90s is haunting me now.

[@mellow-jello]

A serious discussion behind sliding sports needs to be made in 2022, as the brain health of these young athletes have to be protected. It fairs poorly than even motorsports, or boxing, where the athlete contends with the sport itself, rather than knowingly endangered by the physics of the track itself.

[@jmw434]

I truly imagine how many people who played contact sports deal with these types of mental health issues.......I wish there was a way that everyone could be tested like this to be aware of mental damage.

[@RatnaKumar1416]

Really a great work buddy.. you are the guru of investigations

[@GiddyThis]

Not sure if any sport should be risk free but more Knowledge about the risks is important and if you can minimize the risk thats good too.

[@johnversosas8298]

Attention to Olympics committee to have this sporting event checked for athletes safety.

[@Luaksz]

The athletes understand the risk and willingly partake in the event. The IOC also understands this

[@nockreel1190]

My first act of office will be to get rid of sledding in the Olympics 🤣

[@krishnachaitanya1220]

It's not a sport for faint hearted ❤️

[@ivgorm9365]

or the faint headed

[@mikestafford2523]

Sad but true,I hope it helps others,before it's too late...

[@turtle4llama]

They could put the sleds on a track. The path is already leveled and smoothed, but a track would reduce vibration and almost eliminate the risk of serious injury and death. The sled is still propeled and driven manually, just less murdery.

[@mrmaniac3]

Wait I thought it was obvious, you're sitting on a table going highway speeds around a marble circuit, you're trying to tell me it takes a trained eye to know that's dangerous?

[@TywinLannister666]

GOTTA GO FAST M8

[@DanielRodriguez-gm1ih]

Right!? Like they don’t even put padding.

[@DavidCowie2022]

The dangers of crashing are obvious. What isn't obvious is that the sport is still dangerous even if you don't crash.

[@_pimes_]

They need to make a HANS device for this

[@dentistrider3874]

They *completely* overlooked the 103 g's from a football players impact. I know it's not the subject of the video, but they put higher on the concussion range. I thought they might do a nod to it, since it's so incredibly high. I mean when your point is on how bad something is, it feels weird to be thrown a much worse figure that isn't addressed.

[@EmyrDerfel]

CTE in footballers is already known, and it's semi-obvious because of the impacts. In sliding sports, they're suffering even without crashes because of the combination of high-G corners and roughness.

[@abathtub1411]

yeah like Emyr said the impact of, well, impacts on football players is already pretty well known, studied, and talked about. The point of this video was to talk about a lesser known and different type of sport related brain injury, and for American audiences at least an aside to talk about football would be a somewhat redundant as those issues are already pretty well known. It sort of acted as a refrence point.

[@jackfenton2271]

My youngest daughter raced Skeleton for 4 years. Thank goodness she's skydiving now. (?)

[@fatherfreddie8512]

Can we all appreciate the fact that Vox never disappointed us with her content 🤚🤚🤚

[@Jennifer-wr9si]

I remember a wooden rollercoaster eons ago. Incredibly bumpy and so easy to get whiplash. Can only imagine what sledding would be like…

[@narkxis5691]

Hey there random person from the future! (First of all, why are you wasting your time reading random comments on a defunct platform?) Would you believe me if I told you that in the year 2022 (yes, 15 centuries after the last gladiatorial combat at the Roman colosseum), there were still millions of people that actively incentivised a "sport" called Rugby by tuning in every week to watch thousands of young adults give eachother traumatic injuries for life? They even made it a national sport in some retrograde countries, changing its name to something nonsensical and promoting huge events that would rake in tons of capital for the big corporations at the expense of most of the athletes' salubrity! Hoomins were awefully silly back in the day, amarite? Hopefully we will have grown a common sense by the time you're reading this! Safe spacetravels, my friend. o/

[@SigmaRho2922]

Nodar Kumaritashvili died in 2010 from a luge training crash at the Vancouver Olympics.

[@owenneale5912]

That was due to a tragic combination of track design, limited experience and the luge sled acting like a spring and hurling him out of the track on impact with the wall.

[@marknc9616]

It is sad for her injuries. As for the sleds, maybe they could add a suspension system. Maybe they could add a heating system in the sleds too. Next they could work on a sound dampening system.

[@Mikewatters99]

Cup holders would be nice too while we're at it.

[@thefunkopopcollector5044]

if it's this dangerous, why isnt this cancelled? or change the system so it's safe for the athletes. This isn't one of the major money making sport to begin with, so safety comes first

[@andrelangston4307]

WHAT!?! breaking your body when you're young can affect you in adulthood?!?! WHAT WHAT WHAT!?!?

[@merthyr1831]

Can imagine this is something people aren't told when they're recruited into the sport. As far as I know, lots of people in sliding sports are scouted while performing other sports, rather than being exposed to it at a young age.

[@elonmusk42]

How about planting grass so they always touch grass

[@mateuszsp8ebc691]

Hi. I'm a skeleton slider and really don't get a point of some comments that the sliding spot may (or shall) be banned because of this or that. What's the point? If somebody think that sliding is too risky for them and they're afraid of neurological symptoms... Huh.. Just don't do that. People do a lot of sport like paragliding, skiing, skydiving, diving or a lot of way more dangerous things. The problem of head injuries are known and federations (at least IBSF) are tracking these issues by quite strict fit-to-slide-after-crash regulation taken on IBSF recognized events and yearly medical examination in form of some memory, time of reaction testing and things like that. This video itself is a little bit polarized because of two reasons: Whistler track has a design flaw which makes it super fast. Way faster that the IBSF and FIL sporting code allows. The problem is that You cannot change this on production without severe civil engineering works. The second things is bobsleding itself. It is known for being the most dangerous sliding of all kind. The sled is very heavy and has big inertia. The partly siting position is not very comfortable and causes much stronger feeling of centrifugal force than skeleton or luge. Also Mr McCarthy are unaware of complexity of measuring such things like vibrations, centrifugal forces etc. It is not easy task from electronic stand point to accurately measure 'real world parameters' in such environment. An evidence for this is results like 84.5G which are impossible, even for very short period. What probably happens were ringing of measurement signal caused by the impulse/step response of either a sensor itself of signal processing chain, like some FIR/IIR filter or another component like that. I'm sliding for only 2 years and I heard a lot of fairy tales about how many centrifugal force athletes get during the run, but nobody published valuable scientific reports with proven measurement setup. Dumping vibrations will be impossible at least with skeleton sled. The way we're controlling the sled during the run is by using semi - weight shifting, semi pressing against certain parts of the sled. Dampers will attenuate everything both ways and sled will became uncontrollable. It also didn't solve a issue You get during the crash.

[@AKStovall]

fighter pilots don't average 9 g's. that's usually the max an airframe can take before damage can occur... 9 g's is a very very hard pull in a fighter jet. pilots don't usually set themselves up to be in that situation unless they absolutely need to.

[@shanepatra7386]

Same as other physical contact sports such as American Football or Boxing. Most of them suffer long term head traumas.

[@dannialkhakdoust4518]

Y’all went downhill quick (It’s a pun :) )

[@johnconnolly3635]

Fantastic information

[@cameronmay230]

I have to believe something like a HANS device could be implemented for the sliders and the equipment could have a basic pushrod suspension for further safety. They’re going at motorsports pace so motorsports level of protection is required

[@brettzolstick989]

I think just about all sports carry some inherent risk of potentially life changing injury. It comes with the nature of any sport, pushing your body to its limits. I think its something athletes should be aware of, but they're the ones who need to decide for themselves if its worth it. Of course we should still strive to make the sport safer, but for a lot of athletes, its worth sacrificing safety for achievement.

[@jimiverson3085]

This is why motor racing drivers have to wear Head And Neck Stabilizers (HANS). That was a learned lesson from Dale Earnhardt's accident.

[@b5yuwu672]

I had a crash the first time i ever tried Skeleton. Luckely i didnt get injured too bad, just hit my head in the icy wall. Got away with it with no major or minor problems.

[@scotticus66]

Just get rid of the ice, and oversized ice skates under the sled and use wheels with proper suspension may be open up the track a bit so there could be more sleds on the tack at the same time, loop the track around may be add an engine to the sled so it can do multiple laps.

[@superzentai900]

Those body tights does not protect the brain

[@anthonys7976]

Update the sleds with some kind of short travel dampened suspension, like an F1 car setup. Everyone’s so resistant to change, that’ll be the last thing they try

[@neilvandeloo429]

I mean, I get this is worth coverage, but is it really a mystery that slamming your head on ice at 100km/h isn't good for you?

[@joseville]

6:09 qEEG - Quantitative Electroencephalogram 7:38 Q-Collar CTE

[@ToxicHorsePucky]

How hard would it be to redesign the tracks to make sure the surfaces and corner transitions are as smooth as possible? Maybe even separating the sled tracks into multiple pieces so they can more easily conform to imperfections.

[@jaepark6648]

I never understood these poles, fences or vertical structures right next to the track.

[@zlatanjakic7717]

The biggest problem is not the sleds but rather the track. A well prepared track is wonderfull to go down, but its usually not the case.

[@space.youtube]

Going for a stroll you experience variations in g force throughout the "step" Standing still you experience 1g

[@Tkm112093evadell]

Awareness is key in sports like this. Athletes should be aware of what they’re getting themselves into. BUT, trying to make these sports any safer will just ruin the sports authenticity and purpose. Yes, it’s good to know and be completely aware of how the sport can affect the athletes physical and mental well-being, but that’s as far as it should go in my opinion.

[@ayushmeena780]

honestly, I don't even see the point of these sports I don't know how skill is being tested here. They just throw you in that and the better designed one win

[@gordonyew2185]

Sledding is basically like Motorsport like f1 and motogp the stakes of dying are high every time they get into the bike , sled or car

[@redofspades]

I never questioned the danger and bravery in some of the olympic sports, but I do question the talent since not many people join some of these sports.

[@palmon8973]

How is this even a sport

[@CastleBomb44]

So would slower tracks help reduce this "sled head" problem? How much time between runs to prevent the worst sled head issue?

[@boothman9321]

Wow, who could have possibly seen this coming.

[@irayan-hun]

Which is more dangerous bobsled, bull riding, boxing, MMA?

[@rockthecraft]

4:12 YOO THAT'S MY HOME PARK'S COASTER! Called "DC Rivals Hypercoaster", yeah it's a mouthful. Located at Warner Bros Movie World in Gold Coast Australia!

[@samuelskinny]

Yep, motocross is a big one for this, especially on light bikes that get thrown around. During something called breaking bumps it feels like your brain is slamming a brick wall