Female athletes and concussions explored in ground-breaking documentary by U of M's Tucker Center and Twin Cities station

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MINNEAPOLIS / ST. PAUL (10/03/2011) —In collaboration with the University of Minnesota’s Tucker Center for Research on Girls and Women in Sport, Twin Cities Public Television (TPT) Channel 2 has produced a ground-breaking, one-hour documentary on the untold story of female athletes and concussion injuries airing at 8 p.m. on Sunday, October 16.

Concussions and their devastating consequences affect athletes in all sports and at all levels. However, while sport-related concussions have ignited a national conversation and public debate about this serious brain injury, the majority of attention has focused on male athletes. Critical issues surrounding the impact of concussion on female athletes have been largely ignored. Through the personal stories and experiences of coaches, athletes and their families, as well as in-depth interviews with nationally recognized scholars and medical experts, this documentary examines the causes underlying concussion and offers practical solutions to help prevent and treat sports-related concussion injuries in female athletes.

“This partnership with TPT allows us to fulfill the core mission of the Tucker Center—to engage in research that truly makes a difference in the live of girls and women, their families, and communities,” says Tucker Center Director and Professor Mary Jo Kane. “We are also deeply committed to educational endeavors and community outreach that provides knowledge to a vast audience. In the case of serious brain injuries such as a concussion, this documentary could save lives.”

In a unique arrangement, TPT has granted the Tucker Center rights to distribute the documentary as an educational tool to a broad constituency, including high school and college coaches, along with scholars, educators, policy makers and the general public.

“Having the ability to widely disseminate the video will make a difference and impact those who need the information the most,” said Nicole M. LaVoi, associate director of the Tucker Center.

Former U of M President Robert Bruininks, who appears in the documentary, states, “Sport-related concussions are a much more serious issue than we thought just a few years ago. There is no better place than the Tucker Center and the U of M to have a serious conversation about the implications of this injury on the long-term health of girls and women who participate in exercise and sports."

To read the news story and see a clip of the documentary, click here.

To read a CNN.com story on the topic released this week, click here.

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