LOS ANGELES – Protecting and improving the health of the athlete brain is a lead focus of a global athlete health initiative by the International Sponsor Council (ISC), the trade association for corporate sponsors. The target goal of the ISC athlete brain health program is to provide critical medical research and funding led by the ISC in support of more scientific investigation into brain diseases afflicting athletes such as traumatic brain injury (TBI), chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), ALS and dementia involving Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s disease. In addition to research, the program will also include a summit that brings athletes, the sports industry, sponsors and members of the neurologic community together in collaboration on this issue.
In a worldwide effort to raise research funds for athlete brain health, the ISC has partnered with the American Brain Foundation, an international charity dedicated to funding research to defeat brain disease. The American Brain Foundation is the central driving force behind bringing neurologists, researchers, patients and caregivers together to help generate funding for and awareness of brain disease research.
“Our goal is to protect the brains of all athletes from girls and boys involved in youth athletics and recreation, to the highly-visible professionals in football, soccer, hockey, MMA, rugby, as well as nontraditional athletes including eSports,” said Terry Cecil, CEO and Chief Sustainability Engineer of the ISC. “We are also including the impact of virtual, mixed and augmented reality technology on both athletes and fans. This represents millions of people around the world and is a world challenge with a serious impact on society. Partnering with the American Brain Foundation on this project will have a valuable global impact for athletes, fans, sponsors and society.”
Cecil added, “From the perspective of corporate sponsors, athlete health is a sustainability issue. Sponsors have a collective interest and responsibility to help provide leadership on athlete health. Sustainability is a core value for most of the world’s large corporations, and they commit to it throughout their business processes which should include sponsorship. Health, safety and wellness are a critical part of that commitment. As sponsors, these corporations recognize that athletes are a critical stakeholder–without athletes, sport does not exist and therefore neither would sport sponsorship.”
“Through this collaboration, the American Brain Foundation will work to develop an army of researchers focused on athlete brain health,” said Robert Griggs, MD, FAAN, Chair of the American Brain Foundation’s Research Advisory Committee. “Our unique research partnership with our founder, the American Academy of Neurology, gives our foundation access to the best and brightest minds to source the most high-risk and high-reward research on athlete brain health.”
About International Sponsor Council
The International Sponsor Council (ISC) is the world trade organization representing corporate sponsors. The mission of the ISC is to promote and protect the collective interests of and increase the efficiency of corporations as sponsors. The ISC works with industries utilizing sponsorship including sport, music,
entertainment, education, science and NGOs. As the leading driver for the integration of sustainability and sponsorship, the ISC impacts the current and future of the industry. For more information, please visit www.sponsorcouncil.org.
About the American Brain Foundation
The American Brain Foundation funds the vital research needed to cure brain disease that affects one in six Americans. Founded by the American Academy of Neurology, the world’s largest association serving neurologists and the neuroscience community, the American Brain Foundation’s mission is to bring researchers and donors together to defeat brain disease. www.americanbrainfoundation.org