First-ever Global CTE Summit announces first CTE Prevention Protocol, new CTE education policy push
Former Surgeon General Dr. Richard Carmona: “This might be the most underreported public health challenge in the world right now.”
SAN FRANCISCO — The inaugural Global CTE Summit, hosted by the Concussion & CTE Foundation in collaboration with UCSF Weill Institute for Neurosciences Memory and Aging Center, and the Boston University CTE Center, brought together leading scientists, policymakers, former NFL players, and public health leaders from around the world at a summit designed to train doctors on how to treat suspected chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE).
The Monday event featured several major announcements with global implications for sports safety and brain health:
Professional Footballers’ Association announces world’s first CTE Prevention Protocol
The Professional Footballers’ Association (PFA) of England announced they have implemented a CTE Prevention Protocol, making it the first professional sports league in the world to formally adopt a comprehensive framework designed to reduce the risk of CTE. The protocol focuses on limiting repetitive head impacts, educating athletes on CTE, and supporting former players with dementia.
California Lawmaker signals new youth sports CTE education effort
California State Assemblymember David Tangipa, former Fresno State tight end, announced his intent to file resolutions to encourage CTE education for youth contact sport coaches statewide. The proposed resolution is supported by the Concussion & CTE Foundation and the California Neurological Society, underscoring growing bipartisan and medical consensus around the need for early education and prevention.
“I want to make sure every single elected official knows the work being done to protect the youth, promote our sports, provide safety, and to bring awareness to what CTE actually is,” said Assemblymember Tangipa. “This is the first step. This is not the last step.”
Warren Sapp voices support for CTE education, age limits for tackling
Pro Football Hall of Famer Warren Sapp publicly voiced his support for Assemblymember Tangipa’s resolution, emphasizing the importance of preventing CTE through education. Sapp also supports the Concussion & CTE Foundation’s Stop Hitting Kids in the campaign which calls on all sports to eliminate repetitive head impacts until age 14.
“We don’t sit around the Hall of Fame and talk about Pop Warner football,” Sapp said. “We always talk about the game and the men that are playing it now. It’s our obligation to the game to make it better. It’s how we apply it to our children and the age that we give it to them.”
Global momentum for prevention and diagnosis
Additional Summit sessions addressed advances in CTE research, efforts to diagnose the disease in the living, and the growing role of public policy in protecting athletes at every level of play.
“CTE prevention requires courage – the courage to change tradition, the courage to confront denial, and the courage to put long-term health ahead of short-term gains,” said Dr. Richard Carmona, the 17th U.S. Surgeon General. “The responsibility does not belong to someone else. It belongs to parents, coaches, leagues, schools, healthcare professionals, policymakers, and all of us.”