Monday, August 14, 2017
No Holds Barred: Dr. Bennet Omalu on Wrestling, Grappling, CTE, and Concussions
On this edition of No Holds Barred, host Eddie Goldman once again spoke with Dr. Bennet Omalu.
He was in New York Monday, August 7, to give a presentation at the CUNY Graduate School of Journalism in New York, and hosted by the New York Press Club, about his new book, Truth Doesn't Have a Side.
Dr. Omalu is the pioneering forensic pathologist who was the first to prove a connection between the head trauma and brain injuries which inherently result from playing American football, and the disease CTE, chronic traumatic encephalopathy.
We spoke with him right after this presentation, and mainly about why he included wrestling in his list of high-contact sports which children under the age of 18 should avoid, which are football, boxing, MMA, ice hockey, and rugby.
A study published September 2015 in the American Journal of Sports Medicine found that college wrestling has the highest rate of concussions of any college sport, including football. But as to rules changes in wrestling to make it safer, Dr. Omalu said, "I tend to defer to the sports experts, because I'm not an expert in many of these sports."
Dr. Omalu, however, sees wrestling's problems as being far deeper than just the levels of head trauma and brain injuries.
"The problem with wrestling is," he said, "there's no professional wrestling outside WWE.
"So if you, say, allow wrestling in children, that means you're encouraging children eventually to go into MMA or WWE. Does that make sense? So that is why I lump all of them together, because I see it as a spectrum."
In addition to his comments on the combat and contact sports, we add commentaries on some of the issues related to CTE, concussions, and combat sports. Those include the prevalence of concussions in judo, breaking the links between real wrestling and grappling and both WWE and MMA, the need for combat sports training for self-defense, and much, much more.
You can play or download No Holds Barred here and here. If one link does not work, please try another.
No Holds Barred is available at Google Play Music.
Also, No Holds Barred is available through iTunes.
You can also listen to No Holds Barred via Stitcher through iOS or Android devices or on the web here.
The PodOmatic Podcast Player app is available for free, both for Android at Google Play, and for iOS on the App Store.
The No Holds Barred theme song is called "The Heist", which is also available on iTunes by composer Ian Snow.
No Holds Barred is sponsored by:
The Catch Wrestling Alliance, resurrecting and promoting the sport of authentic catch-as-catch-can wrestling. The Catch Wrestling Alliance provides tournaments, seminars, and training as well as education about catch wrestling. Join the movement and keep real wrestling alive. For more information, go to CatchWrestlingAlliance.com.
Skullz Double-End Bags, the perfect bag for your combat sports training. Skullz Double-End Bags provide a realistic striking target, and help improve timing, distance, and hand and eye coordination. Hang it and hit it right out of the box! No pump required. For more information, go to SkullzDeBags.com.
USA Combat Wrestling, the official U.S. governing body for combat wrestling and U.S. delegate of the International Combat Wrestling Federation (FICW), which was founded by the legendary wrestler Noriaki Kiguchi of Japan. For more information, go to CombatWrestling.us.
Labels: American football, children, chronic traumatic encephalopathy, combat, concussion, Dr. Bennet Omalu. CTE, Eddie Goldman, grappling, judo, MMA, No Holds Barred, sports, wrestling
Thursday, August 10, 2017
No Holds Barred: Dr. Bennet Omalu on CTE, Children, and Football
On this edition of No Holds Barred, host Eddie Goldman presents the complete audio from the August 7 presentation by Dr. Bennet Omalu at the CUNY Graduate School of Journalism in New York, and hosted by the New York Press Club, as well as the informative and lively question-and-answer session which followed the presentation.
Dr. Omalu is the pioneering forensic pathologist who was the first to prove a connection between the head trauma and brain injuries which inherently result from playing American football, and the disease CTE, chronic traumatic encephalopathy.
He was in New York conducting interviews as part of a tour to promote his new book, Truth Doesn't Have a Side.
In the discussion, Dr. Omalu passionately voiced his opposition to children under the age of 18 playing American football or engaging in other contact sports.
"Do you love your child less than you love football? Which do you love more, football, or the life of your child? This is a question society should answer," he said.
As to the continuing popularity of NFL football, he said, "It's all about money. We are placing money above the value of the life of our children. But I believe strongly, in the fullness of time, it will change, because the truth will prevail. Does that make sense?"
And he specified, "I have always said, and it has been my position forever, that no child under the age of 18, in America today, should play the high-impact, high-contact collision sports. The Big Six are American football, ice hockey, mixed martial arts, wrestling, boxing, rugby."
A one-on-one interview with Dr. Omalu will be posted on a subsequent edition of No Holds Barred.
You can play or download No Holds Barred here and here. If one link does not work, please try another.
No Holds Barred is available at Google Play Music.
Also, No Holds Barred is available through iTunes.
You can also listen to No Holds Barred via Stitcher through iOS or Android devices or on the web here.
The PodOmatic Podcast Player app is available for free, both for Android at Google Play, and for iOS on the App Store.
The No Holds Barred theme song is called "The Heist", which is also available on iTunes by composer Ian Snow.
No Holds Barred is sponsored by:
The Catch Wrestling Alliance, resurrecting and promoting the sport of authentic catch-as-catch-can wrestling. The Catch Wrestling Alliance provides tournaments, seminars, and training as well as education about catch wrestling. Join the movement and keep real wrestling alive. For more information, go to CatchWrestlingAlliance.com.
Skullz Double-End Bags, the perfect bag for your combat sports training. Skullz Double-End Bags provide a realistic striking target, and help improve timing, distance, and hand and eye coordination. Hang it and hit it right out of the box! No pump required. For more information, go to SkullzDeBags.com.
USA Combat Wrestling, the official U.S. governing body for combat wrestling and U.S. delegate of the International Combat Wrestling Federation (FICW), which was founded by the legendary wrestler Noriaki Kiguchi of Japan. For more information, go to CombatWrestling.us.
Labels: American football, children, chronic traumatic encephalopathy, combat, concussion, contact, Dr. Bennet Omalu. CTE, Eddie Goldman, No Holds Barred, sports
Tuesday, August 08, 2017
Dr. Bennet Omalu Comes To New York
On Monday, August 7, Dr. Bennet Omalu, the pioneering forensic pathologist who discovered the link between the disease of chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) and American football, and whose life and work were dramatized in the 2015 film "Concussion" starring Will Smith, made the media rounds in New York. He was there to promote his new book, Truth Doesn't Have a Side, which has just been released.
I was able to attend his presentation and the question-and-answer session that followed, hosted by the New York Press Club and held at the CUNY Graduate School of Journalism. I also got a one-on-one interview with Dr. Omalu, specifically focusing on the issue of head trauma and combat sports which have no striking, such as the various styles of wrestling and grappling.
Audio of the presentation and the interview will be posted shortly on No Holds Barred.
Labels: American football, Bennet Omalu. CTE, chronic traumatic encephalopathy, combat, concussion, contact, Eddie Goldman, sports
Sunday, March 22, 2015
No Holds Barred: Some Thoughts on My Birthday
On this edition of No Holds Barred, host Eddie Goldman, who is celebrating his birthday on Sunday, March 22, offers some thoughts and observations on the state of sports in general and the combat sports in particular. Discussed are the growing concern with head trauma and concussions; why retirement is not an option for him; the many problems facing wrestling and grappling events; the need to understand the world as a whole in order to understand the sports world; 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:
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 AmericanTopTeam.com.
Defense Soap, an effective, deep penetrating body soap with natural antifungal, antiviral, and antibacterial soap ingredients. Defense Soap is the best cleansing body soap for men and women athletes who are involved in contact sports such as MMA, wrestling, grappling, jiu-jitsu, and judo, to help their antifungal, anti-ringworm, anti-jock itch strategy. Check out their web site, at DefenseSoap.com.
Takedown Wrestling Media, America's wrestling TV and radio shows, which are hosted by founder Scott Casber, and have been airing on radio and Internet for over 17 years. Takedown Media produces a weekly TV program seen in 54 million homes in the U.S. on DirecTV, Dish Network, and cable affiliates around the country, called Takedown TV. Takedown Media also produces the weekly USA Wrestling TV show for the governing body of the sport, USA Wrestling. For more information, go to TakedownRadio.com.
Labels: birthday, boxing, catch, combat, concussions, Eddie Goldman, grappling, MMA, No Holds Barred, sports, wrestling
Saturday, March 07, 2015
No Holds Barred: Bob Carson on the State of MMA and Combat Sports
On this edition of No Holds Barred, host Eddie Goldman once again spoke with Bob Carson, the host of Carson's Corner.
To mark the ninth anniversary of the No Holds Barred podcast this week, we did not have cake or drink beer, but had a lengthy and wide-ranging discussion on the state of MMA and the combat sports in general.
We spoke with Bob Carson by Skype Wednesday.
Speaking of the state of MMA today, he minced no words.
"What you have is basically a spectacle that I don't think is on a solid foundation anymore," he said.
"I think that this is a sport now unfortunately that is one scandal away, one mishap away from extinction."
We discussed these myriad scandals plaguing MMA and whether or not it could survive in the long-term. We also discussed the lessons and implications of these scandals for re-emerging sports like catch wrestling and combat wrestling, the pathetic role played by virtually all of those who masquerade as the MMA "media", the current revival of boxing, and much, 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:
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 AmericanTopTeam.com.
Defense Soap, an effective, deep penetrating body soap with natural antifungal, antiviral, and antibacterial soap ingredients. Defense Soap is the best cleansing body soap for men and women athletes who are involved in contact sports such as MMA, wrestling, grappling, jiu-jitsu, and judo, to help their antifungal, anti-ringworm, anti-jock itch strategy. Check out their web site, at DefenseSoap.com.
Takedown Wrestling Media, America's wrestling TV and radio shows, which are hosted by founder Scott Casber, and have been airing on radio and Internet for over 17 years. Takedown Media produces a weekly TV program seen in 54 million homes in the U.S. on DirecTV, Dish Network, and cable affiliates around the country, called Takedown TV. Takedown Media also produces the weekly USA Wrestling TV show for the governing body of the sport, USA Wrestling. For more information, go to TakedownRadio.com.
Labels: Bob Carson, boxing, Carson's Corner, catch, combat, Eddie Goldman, grappling, media, MMA, No Holds Barred, sports, wrestling
Sunday, January 11, 2015
No Holds Barred: Mike Martelle on Grizzly's Quest to Wrestle in Senegal
On this edition of No Holds Barred, host Eddie Goldman once again spoke with Mike Martelle, the owner and head instructor of the Grizzly Gym.
A martial artist who has mastered numerous disciplines and styles of both grappling and striking, he will be traveling from Kingston, Ontario, Canada, this coming week to Dakar, Senegal, in Africa, to train and compete in the traditional style of wrestling known as Laamb. There he will train with Kairé Deux at the Soumbédioune Training Center (l'écurie Soumbédioune), as well as conduct seminars in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and MMA.
He is working on this project with the Lion Heart Initiative.
We spoke with Mike Martelle by phone Thursday.
"Ever since I was a little kid when I started martial arts decades ago, it was always my lifelong dream to compete on every continent," he said. "This trip to Africa will complete that goal. This will be the last of the six viable continents that I will be traveling to and competing upon."
He continued, "We'll be competing in a traditional form of wrestling, the national sport of Senegal, called Laamb."
There are two versions of Laamb: amateur and professional.
"Essentially you're looking to win via taking your opponent down, or putting him out-of-bounds. And in the professional version, you can also use closed-fist punches to, shall we say, encourage the takedown," he said.
"So I'm very excited about it. It's going to be fantastic."
We discussed more about the Lion Heart Initiative, the potential for Laamb (also called Senegalese Wrestling) to become a popular sport worldwide, why this is "sport at its purest, at its most primal", upcoming plans for catch wrestling and combat wrestling events this year, and much, 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:
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 AmericanTopTeam.com.
Defense Soap, an effective, deep penetrating body soap with natural antifungal, antiviral, and antibacterial soap ingredients. Defense Soap is the best cleansing body soap for men and women athletes who are involved in contact sports such as MMA, wrestling, grappling, jiu-jitsu, and judo, to help their antifungal, anti-ringworm, anti-jock itch strategy. Check out their web site, at DefenseSoap.com.
Payleg.com, which gives you the tools to develop a full-time income by building a home-based business. Teaching success in the home-based business industry since 1988, Payleg.com is available in 190 countries. For more information, go to Payleg.com.
Takedown Wrestling Media, America's wrestling TV and radio shows, which are hosted by founder Scott Casber, and have been airing on radio and Internet for over 17 years. Takedown Media produces a weekly TV program seen in 54 million homes in the U.S. on DirecTV, Dish Network, and cable affiliates around the country, called Takedown TV. Takedown Media also produces the weekly USA Wrestling TV show for the governing body of the sport, USA Wrestling. For more information, go to TakedownRadio.com.
Labels: Africa, catch, combat, Eddie Goldman, Grizzly Gym, Grizzly's Quest, Laamb, Lion Heart Initiative, Mike Martelle, No Holds Barred, Senegal, wrestling
Saturday, December 08, 2012
No Holds Barred: Dr. Ann McKee on Concussions, CTE, and Contact Sports
A study was published Monday by Boston University School of Medicine researchers, including Dr. McKee, about the effects of head injuries on 85 deceased brain donors, most of whom had been professional athletes in contact sports.
We spoke with Dr. McKee about the findings of this study on Friday by Skype.
"This is a study of 85 individuals who all had a history of repetitive, what we call mild brain traumas, meaning by that concussion and sub-concussive injuries, so injury that didn't even rise to the level of a concussion," said Dr. McKee in this interview. "Most of the individuals studied were football players, but there were also hockey players, boxers, as well as military veterans, most of which had had some athletic exposure. In this study, we looked for the effects of this repetitive mild brain trauma."
The key finding of this study was, "We found in 80 percent that they had a condition called chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE)."
CTE is a brain disease associated with dementia, impairment and loss of cognition, and related physical and mental problems.
A study with this size of a sample, of course, could not definitively establish the exact relationship between head trauma, concussions, and CTE, and there are also genetic factors involved which remain to be studied. But the evidence is moving in a direction which indicates that at least, repetitive head injuries greatly increase the risk of CTE.
While much more research still must be done, and CTE can at this time only be diagnosed through autopsies, the existing research poses a question, especially for parents of children who are participating or considering participating in contact sports like football, hockey, boxing, or MMA: Should parents let their children participate in these sports, and if so, what special safeguards are needed for children in them?
Again, while more research needs to be done, Dr. McKee acknowledged this problem today, advising parents, with caution, "Let's play sports that don't involve hitting your head."
We also discussed how this ongoing research may affect contact and combat sports in years to come, what we know and don't know about head trauma in combat sports with no striking like wrestling and grappling, how interested people can assist this research, 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.
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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: Ann McKee, boxing, brain, chronic traumatic encephalopathy, combat, concussions, contact sports, CTE, Eddie Goldman, hockey, injury, MMA, No Holds Barred, wrestling
