sports safety

Nine years ago, Zackery Lystedt was a playing football game with his team at Maple Valley Junior High. Zack went back into the game in the fourth quarter after a hard hit in the third. The game ended, his dad, Victor, ran out onto the field to congratulate Zach for a good play. Zack told his dad that his head hurt. Then, he said, he couldn't see, and then Zack collapsed onto the field.

Did you know learning CPR can triple the chance of survival for someone experiencing sudden cardiac arrest (SCA)? Yet, according to the American Heart Association, 70 percent of Americans may feel helpless to act during a cardiac emergency due to lack of education or training. 

National CPR & AED Awareness week (June 1-7) is a perfect time to learn more about how to prevent sudden cardiac arrest and the steps you can take if someone around you needs help.

My experience as a coach leads me to believe that coach training and knowledge is not what it should be. What can we do to restore the trust in the relationship between coaches, parents and their kids? It is vital that we do so, because a kid's involvement in team sports is important as they grow up. 

If you're one of those parents who insists on yelling at the officials during your kid’s sporting event, let me start by saying, you’re right. OK? The kid probably did travel. That was a total strike. It was definitely icing. Obvious pass interference. But that doesn’t make up for all the ways we’re wrong.

Parents, learn a few tips to keep your kids safe while they have fun in the snow. 

My son, Murphy, is passionate about playing football. Along with that passion comes bumps, bruises, and a fair share of helmet clashing. The physical intensity and risk of injury rises each year as he ages, and his practice schedule is a grueling 6-8 hour-per-week regimen. Murphy managed to play relatively injury free until well into his third year in 2012.

In May 2013, my eleven year-old son Giovanni was pitching for his little league baseball team in Staten Island, New York. It was the bottom of the fifth inning. He had already struck out two batters and the third batter, about a foot taller than my son, was on deck. Giovanni’s first pitch went right down the middle of the plate. The batter swung and hit, and the ball hit my son in the face.

There’s nothing that feels worse for young athletes than getting hurt and having to sit on the sidelines while their team goes on to victory. Our new report, “Changing the Culture of Youth Sports,” explores how the culture of youth sports may be keeping kids out of the game. Here's a look at what parents, coaches and athletes need to know.