Tuesday, January 22, 2013
No Holds Barred: Dr. Margaret Goodman
On this edition of No Holds Barred, host Eddie Goldman once again speaks with Dr. Margaret Goodman, the president and board chairman of VADA, the Voluntary Anti-Doping Association.
In a little over a year of existence, VADA has had a major impact on the combat sports. Another step forward will be taken this week when the first MMA fighter to complete the VADA pre-fight drug-testing program, Bellator welterweight champion Ben Askren, defends his title on January 24 against Karl Amoussou.
But a lot more needs to be done, especially in the combat sports, to educate people on the dangers of performance-enhancing drugs.
"It's always been amazing to me that the public gets so up in arms when they think a decision wasn't judged properly," said Dr. Goodman in this interview, which was recorded by phone Tuesday.
"But I cannot for my life imagine why the fans, who really can have a strong voice and put pressure on these athletic commissions, don't speak out when they see that an athlete has tested positive for a performance-enhancing substance, and they themselves the fans watched that fight under false pretenses."
We discussed the growing use of these substances even among children, and the book by Dr. Robert C. Cantu, "Concussions and Our Kids", which advocates that children under the age of 14 should be restricted from participating in contact sports where there is the likelihood of head trauma.
In addition, we discussed the continuing widespread granting of therapeutic-use exemptions for testosterone, especially in MMA, without proper medical testing and evaluation. We discussed the relationship between drug use and CTE, chronic traumatic encephalopathy. We commented on the suicide at age 43 last year of popular NFL linebacker Junior Seau, who suffered from CTE.
And we discussed what all this might mean in future years and decades for sports like boxing, kickboxing, American football, MMA, and ice hockey, where head trauma is part of the sport itself. We also discussed the Lance Armstrong situation, the need for further study of the effects of chokes on the brain in sports like grappling, what the public can do on these issues, and much more.
You can play or download No Holds Barred here and here. If one link doesn't work, please try another.
No Holds Barred is also available on mobile phones and iPads through Stitcher.
Also, No Holds Barred is available through iTunes.
The No Holds Barred theme song is called "The Heist", which is also available on iTunes by composer Ian Snow.
No Holds Barred is free to listen to and is sponsored by:
ONE Fighting Championship. ONE FC is Asia's largest and most prestigious mixed martial arts event. ONE FC features the best Asian fighters and has initiated the ONE Asia Partnership Network, which includes most of the major MMA promotions and MMA gyms in Asia. For more information, go to their web site, at ONEFC.com.
MMA World Expo. The mixed martial arts community comes to New York City February 16 and 17, 2013, for the fourth annual MMA World Expo, featuring an amateur MMA tournament, grappling, MMA fighters, seminars with world-class trainers, vendors, panel discussions, and much more. The MMA World Expo takes place Saturday, February 16, and Sunday, February 17, 2013, at the Jacob Javits Center in New York City.
Beezid.com - Penny Auctions. Your #1 source for exciting auction shopping and outstanding deals on just about anything! Top rated, most trusted auction site online. Where do you shop? Beezid.com - Penny Auctions.
American Top Team. Whether you're a beginner or a champion, train with the champions in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, boxing, wrestling, grappling, and mixed martial arts at American Top Team. Check out their web site at http://americantopteam.com/.
In a little over a year of existence, VADA has had a major impact on the combat sports. Another step forward will be taken this week when the first MMA fighter to complete the VADA pre-fight drug-testing program, Bellator welterweight champion Ben Askren, defends his title on January 24 against Karl Amoussou.
But a lot more needs to be done, especially in the combat sports, to educate people on the dangers of performance-enhancing drugs.
"It's always been amazing to me that the public gets so up in arms when they think a decision wasn't judged properly," said Dr. Goodman in this interview, which was recorded by phone Tuesday.
"But I cannot for my life imagine why the fans, who really can have a strong voice and put pressure on these athletic commissions, don't speak out when they see that an athlete has tested positive for a performance-enhancing substance, and they themselves the fans watched that fight under false pretenses."
We discussed the growing use of these substances even among children, and the book by Dr. Robert C. Cantu, "Concussions and Our Kids", which advocates that children under the age of 14 should be restricted from participating in contact sports where there is the likelihood of head trauma.
In addition, we discussed the continuing widespread granting of therapeutic-use exemptions for testosterone, especially in MMA, without proper medical testing and evaluation. We discussed the relationship between drug use and CTE, chronic traumatic encephalopathy. We commented on the suicide at age 43 last year of popular NFL linebacker Junior Seau, who suffered from CTE.
And we discussed what all this might mean in future years and decades for sports like boxing, kickboxing, American football, MMA, and ice hockey, where head trauma is part of the sport itself. We also discussed the Lance Armstrong situation, the need for further study of the effects of chokes on the brain in sports like grappling, what the public can do on these issues, and much more.
You can play or download No Holds Barred here and here. If one link doesn't work, please try another.
No Holds Barred is also available on mobile phones and iPads through Stitcher.
Also, No Holds Barred is available through iTunes.
The No Holds Barred theme song is called "The Heist", which is also available on iTunes by composer Ian Snow.
No Holds Barred is free to listen to and is sponsored by:
ONE Fighting Championship. ONE FC is Asia's largest and most prestigious mixed martial arts event. ONE FC features the best Asian fighters and has initiated the ONE Asia Partnership Network, which includes most of the major MMA promotions and MMA gyms in Asia. For more information, go to their web site, at ONEFC.com.
MMA World Expo. The mixed martial arts community comes to New York City February 16 and 17, 2013, for the fourth annual MMA World Expo, featuring an amateur MMA tournament, grappling, MMA fighters, seminars with world-class trainers, vendors, panel discussions, and much more. The MMA World Expo takes place Saturday, February 16, and Sunday, February 17, 2013, at the Jacob Javits Center in New York City.
Beezid.com - Penny Auctions. Your #1 source for exciting auction shopping and outstanding deals on just about anything! Top rated, most trusted auction site online. Where do you shop? Beezid.com - Penny Auctions.
American Top Team. Whether you're a beginner or a champion, train with the champions in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, boxing, wrestling, grappling, and mixed martial arts at American Top Team. Check out their web site at http://americantopteam.com/.
Labels: boxing, chronic traumatic encephalopathy, concussions, CTE, Eddie Goldman, Junior Seau, Lance Armstrong, Margaret Goodman, MMA, NFL, No Holds Barred, testosterone, TRT, VADA, Voluntary Anti-Doping Association
Sunday, May 06, 2012
No Holds Barred: Coach George Hero; Suicide of Former NFL Star Junior Seau and the Combat Sports

On this edition of No Holds Barred, host Eddie Goldman speaks with Coach George Hero, the legendary coach and founder of the Midwood High School wrestling team in Brooklyn, New York.
At MidwoodMania III on April 21, the 54-year-old Coach Hero returned to the mat once again and scored a third-period pin over an opponent three decades his junior, former NYU wrestler and current high school coach Mark Shirian. We spoke with Coach Hero right after his victory.
We open with commentary on the suicide this past week of former NFL star linebacker Junior Seau. Just 43 years old, he was found dead of a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the chest. The actual reasons for his suicide are not known at this time. However, according to news reports, his family has agreed to donate his brain to researchers who are studying the links between blows to the head in contact and combat sports, concussions, and the degenerative brain disease CTE, chronic traumatic encephalopathy.
With more of these tragedies and suicides of former athletes in contact and combat sports becoming publicly known, and with the science of understanding what head blows do to the brain becoming more precise, what will this mean in years to come for these sports? We lay out some historical analogies to how dueling and smoking have become socially unacceptable and even banned in whole or in part, and ask if these may provide clues as to the future prospects of these sports. We also note how the combat sports without striking, such as the various styles of grappling and wrestling, need to promote themselves better in light of what may happen to these other sports.
You can play or download No Holds Barred here. You can also download No Holds Barred here. If one link does not work, please try another. The show is in MP3 format, so may take some time to download.
No Holds Barred is also available on mobile phones and iPads through Stitcher.
Also, No Holds Barred is available through iTunes.
The No Holds Barred theme song is called "The Heist", by Ian Carpenter.
No Holds Barred is free to listen to and is sponsored by:
ONE Fighting Championship. ONE FC is Asia's largest and most prestigious mixed martial arts event. ONE FC features the best Asian fighters and has initiated the ONE Asia Partnership Network, which includes most of the major MMA promotions and MMA gyms in Asia. For more information, go to their web site, at ONEFC.com.
Beezid.com - Penny Auctions. Your #1 source for exciting auction shopping and outstanding deals on just about anything! Top rated, most trusted auction site online. Where do you shop? Beezid.com - Penny Auctions.
American Top Team. Whether you're a beginner or a champion, train with the champions in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, boxing, wrestling, grappling, and mixed martial arts at American Top Team. Check out their web site at http://americantopteam.com/.
At MidwoodMania III on April 21, the 54-year-old Coach Hero returned to the mat once again and scored a third-period pin over an opponent three decades his junior, former NYU wrestler and current high school coach Mark Shirian. We spoke with Coach Hero right after his victory.
We open with commentary on the suicide this past week of former NFL star linebacker Junior Seau. Just 43 years old, he was found dead of a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the chest. The actual reasons for his suicide are not known at this time. However, according to news reports, his family has agreed to donate his brain to researchers who are studying the links between blows to the head in contact and combat sports, concussions, and the degenerative brain disease CTE, chronic traumatic encephalopathy.
With more of these tragedies and suicides of former athletes in contact and combat sports becoming publicly known, and with the science of understanding what head blows do to the brain becoming more precise, what will this mean in years to come for these sports? We lay out some historical analogies to how dueling and smoking have become socially unacceptable and even banned in whole or in part, and ask if these may provide clues as to the future prospects of these sports. We also note how the combat sports without striking, such as the various styles of grappling and wrestling, need to promote themselves better in light of what may happen to these other sports.
You can play or download No Holds Barred here. You can also download No Holds Barred here. If one link does not work, please try another. The show is in MP3 format, so may take some time to download.
No Holds Barred is also available on mobile phones and iPads through Stitcher.
Also, No Holds Barred is available through iTunes.
The No Holds Barred theme song is called "The Heist", by Ian Carpenter.
No Holds Barred is free to listen to and is sponsored by:
ONE Fighting Championship. ONE FC is Asia's largest and most prestigious mixed martial arts event. ONE FC features the best Asian fighters and has initiated the ONE Asia Partnership Network, which includes most of the major MMA promotions and MMA gyms in Asia. For more information, go to their web site, at ONEFC.com.
Beezid.com - Penny Auctions. Your #1 source for exciting auction shopping and outstanding deals on just about anything! Top rated, most trusted auction site online. Where do you shop? Beezid.com - Penny Auctions.
American Top Team. Whether you're a beginner or a champion, train with the champions in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, boxing, wrestling, grappling, and mixed martial arts at American Top Team. Check out their web site at http://americantopteam.com/.
Labels: boxing, combat sports, Eddie Goldman, George Hero, grappling, Junior Seau, MMA, NFL, No Holds Barred, wrestling