Gabriel Landeskog Raising Concussion Awareness
Colorado Avalanche captain Gabriel Landeskog, himself a victim of a concussion, speaks out about concussion awareness.
The offseason for some Colorado Avalanche players is about more than just training for the upcoming season. Captain Gabriel Landeskog is using his platform to raise awareness on preventing and treating concussions.
Landeskog suffered from a concussion three years ago after nasty high hit in the neutral zone from Brad Stuart of San Jose Sharks. He skated off the ice, but he returned to the third period:
Editors note: Listen to the opponent announcers call the hit “good” and question why then-Avalanche Ryan O’Byrne felt he had to fight to stand up for his (very young) captain. In the second part of the video, the Avalanche announcers sound like they understand the gravity of the hit.
At the time, Landeskog was just 19 and had been active captain for about a month in the lockout-shortened season. He felt he had to return to the game. Yet he was better evaluated after the game, even being sent back to Denver to consult with specialists. He missed the next 11 games.
Landeskog has teamed up with EMPWR to help start campaign to raise awareness. He and other EMPWR ambassadors have started a public campaign. The campaign is aimed at encouraging more athletes to share their concussion stories.
The athletes are sharing even the scary moments, emotions and not knowing what will happen next. The purpose is to educate athletes, parents ,coaches and sports trainers about how to properly recover from a concussion. “We’re going to come together through social media and really try to engage people to share their stories” Gabriel Landeskog said in his EMPWR video:
During an event held by EMPWR, Landeskog elaborated:
"“I missed 11 games between three and four weeks. I was very sensitive to light as well. Everybody’s got some kind of iPhone these days and you can lower the brightness on your screen to the lowest it got to the point where I couldn’t handle that . I I was so sensitive to light. It is hard for someone that has not experience it to understand and realize that it can bother you. That was going on for a while. “"
The event took place Thursday June 23rd at 3pm ET during a Twitter campaign where EMPWR ambassadors encouraged athletes and non-athletes alike to share stories and empower one another. When people come together, they can make a change and show others that they are not alone.
Landeskog said of becoming involved in EMPWR because” as professional athlete in any sport you have responsibility to speak up and use the platform as a positive influence for things you feel strongly about.”
Next: Colorado Avalanche and Concussions
Its become a growing issue in sports among athletes of any age and sport. The reason these athletes are stepping up is to tell their stories and get involved. You hear so many stories about young athletes suffering concussions. It’s time to find more effective ways to detect, treat and prevent concussions.
I admire what Landeskog is doing. Its great and he s helping other young athletes.