Before concussions were a serious topic in hockey, Steve Montador knew all about the consequences of head injuries. Five years ago, while still playing in the NHL, Montador committed to donating his brain to research.
Charles Tator of the University of Toronto told that story at Montador’s memorial service on Saturday last week in Mississauga, Ontario.
“He didn’t know when it was going to be, but when it did happen he wanted to donate his brain,” former Calgary Flames teammate and current assistant general manager Craig Conroy said. “That just tells you what kind of person he was. Obviously it’s way too early, but if it helps someone else, that’s what he was always about.”
Montador died on Feb. 15 at age 35, more than a year after lingering concussion symptoms forced him to leave his team in Croatia. The defenseman did not play professional hockey again.
Many of his friends and former teammates did not know about his plans. The decision did not surprise those close to him.
“He was very intellectual himself, and looking for answers and trying to figure out what made things work and how to improve things,” retired enforcer George Parros said. “If he could donate his brain to figure out how to best treat concussions and things like that, then he would certainly do it.”
Brain injuries have been the subject of much discussion lately, especially after the 2011 death of enforcer Derek Boogaard. Research determined Boogaard, who died of an accidental drug overdose, had chronic traumatic encephalopathy, or CTE, a degenerative brain condition.
Rick Martin, of Buffalo Sabres French Connection fame, and former Detroit Red Wings tough guy Bob Probert were also posthumously diagnosed with CTE, which has also been found in NFL players and professional wrestlers. Research is ongoing to determine the link between concussions, depression and CTE.
Longtime defenseman Mathieu Schneider had concussions during his career, but was fortunate they did not affect him as much as they did Montador, who battled depression at times when he was unable to play.
“Obviously it had a tremendous effect on his life,” said Schneider, who got to know Montador through work with the NHL Players’ Association. “The players that do have those effects are extremely passionate about it and he was certainly one of the most vocal. He was a leader.”
SS Lazio on Monday fired the far-right sympathizer who handles their eagle mascot after he posted online a series of videos and pictures of his erect penis. Falconer Juan Bernabe, who has been present at Lazio home matches with Olimpia the eagle since the 2010-2011 season, posted the footage on social media after having surgery on Saturday to implant a penile prosthesis to improve his sexual performance. Lazio said that they had “terminated, with immediate effect” their relationship with Bernabe “due to the seriousness of his conduct,” adding that they were “shocked” by the images. The Serie A club added that Bernabe’s dismissal
‘TOUGH TO BREATHE’: Tunisian three-time Grand Slam finalist Ons Jabeur suffered an asthma attack in her 7-5, 6-3 victory over Colombia’s Camila Osorio Taiwan’s Hsieh Su-wei yesterday cruised into the second round of the women’s doubles at the Australian Open, while Iga Swiatek romped into a third-round women’s singles showdown with Emma Raducanu and Taylor Fritz was just as emphatic in his pursuit of a maiden Grand Slam title. Hsieh and Jelena Ostapenko of Latvia, the third seeds, defeated Slovakia’s Tereza Mihalikova and Olivia Nicholls of Britain 7-5, 6-2 in 90 minutes in Melbourne. Ostapenko and Hsieh — who won the women’s doubles and mixed doubles at the Australian Open last year — hit 25 winners and converted five of nine break points to set
Dubbed a “motorway for cyclists” where avid amateurs can chase Tadej Pogacar up mountains teeming with the highest concentration of professional cyclists per square kilometer in the world, Spain’s Costa Blanca has forged a new reputation for itself in the past few years. Long known as the ideal summer destination for those in search of sun, sea and sand, the stretch of coast between Valencia and Alicante now has a winter vocation too. During the season break in December and January, the region experiences an invasion of cyclists. Star names such as three-time Tour de France winner Pogacar, Remco Evenepoel and Julian Alaphilippe
AGING WELL: Olympic champion Zheng Qinwen, 22, was sent packing after being dispatched by world No. 97, Laura Siegemund, the second-oldest player in the draw at 36 Novak Djokovic yesterday created a slice of Grand Slam history on his way into the Australian Open third round, but last year’s women’s finalist Zheng Qinwen was knocked out in the biggest shock so far. Defending champion Aryna Sabalenka, in-form Coco Gauff, two-time Melbourne winner Naomi Osaka and a rampant Carlos Alcaraz were all victors on a rainy day four. Play was suspended on the outside courts for a couple of hours in the early evening because of the wet weather. That led to the rescheduling of a women’s doubles match between wild-cards Tsao Chia-yi of Taiwan and Thailand’s Peangtarn Plipuech and 11th
RSS