The average speed of an indoor field hockey ball, when drag flicking, is upwards of 75 miles per hour. Avoiding the ball every time is almost impossible. Taking a ball to the head has the potential to shatter bones, or cause a serious brain injury. Dating back before ancient Olympic Games, field hockey is one of the oldest competitive sports; it has evolved tremendously since then. During ancient times, field hockey was considered too dangerous for women. Today, women play this thrilling game using stiff, composite, slightly curved sticks that range primarily from 35 to 39 inches long to hit a hard, plastic ball. For protection, all players must wear a mouth guard and shin guards. Many players choose to wear gloves, too, but they are not required. Over many years and numerous rule changes, women’s indoor field hockey has become a dangerous, yet exhilarating and fast-paced game. To play, each team uses six players at a time, usually five field players and a goalkeeper. Moving the ball down the field while keeping the ball on the ground is a huge challenge, but scoring and defending are, by far, the most important tasks of field hockey. Once near the goal, players are allowed to flick the ball into the air to try to hit the ball into the goal. Generally a passing game, it is likely that sticks will be high, and the ball always moves fast. In indoor field hockey, face masks should be required, to reduce external injuries, to prevent internal injuries, and to decrease liability for injury for the coaches and the venue.
On the field, there is a specific area on each half of the playing field, known as “the D” or “the circle,” where players are permitted to shoot. When in the D, the ball is allowed to be lifted and hit as long as it...
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...for injury for the coaches and the venue. Athletes are more likely to play to their full potentials if they are better protected. Traumatic visits to the emergency room will become less common if players must wear a mask. Though field hockey is a fast paced, dangerous game, wearing face-masks will greatly reduce the number of injuries while playing field hockey. With fewer injuries, more girls may decide to join this thrilling, venerable sport. Coaching teams will become easier if girls are more willing to play aggressively. Without the risk of lawsuit from the parents of an innocent victim of a concussion, hosting tournaments would be simpler, and could possibly allow for more tournaments to arise, giving athletes more opportunities to play field hockey. Ultimately, wearing face masks during indoor field hockey games may make the difference between life and death.
Helmet or no helmet? This controversial issue for girls lacrosse has been growing stronger each year. If you have ever seen men's lacrosse their uniforms are almost identical to a football player. While women only wear goggles and a mouth guard. So why why is this such a controversial issue? Shouldn’t women want to wear helmets for protection? There is a lot of evidence to review on the topic. In the articles titled, “A Case Against Helmets in Lacrosse.” by Alan Schwarz, the non-fiction piece titled “Headgear Rule for Girls” by Bill Pennington, another article named, “Helmets In Lacrosse” by Krystina Lucid, and “How Women's Field Lacrosse Differs from Men's Field Lacrosse” by James Hinkson and Joe Lombardi. Girls lacrosse should not wear more head gear/ a helmet because if they are protected they feel they can play a more aggressive game, the rules in girls lacrosse do not allow any
Are current equipment regulations enough to keep our hockey athletes safe? I ask this after the life threatening injury that recently occurred here in Buffalo. However this isn’t the first time that the NHL (National Hockey League) has seen injuries of this magnitude. What were these injuries? How did they affect the NHL rules? What kind of rules are in place today? What is the NHL doing about neck guards? These questions and more will be answered as we take a look into NHL injuries, the history of equipment regulations, current equipment regulations, and the debate over neck guards.
Some feared that playing sports could cause some health risks for women and that the competition would make them less feminine (Ederle). Although there were many who were concerned about these risks, women did not let this keep them from participating in sports and other physical activities. Women began to compete in large events and even in the 1900 Olympics where the first nineteen women participated in golf, croquet and tennis. Margaret I. Abbott was the first American woman to win an Olympic gold medal. She shot a forty-seven to win the 9-hole golf tournament (Ederle). Glenna Collett later won many golf championships from 1922 through the 1930s and was a member of the Golf Hall Of Fame and the U.S. Curtis Cup Team (“Female Athletes”). Madge Syers entered the all-male 1902 figure skating world championship and placed 2nd. This caused a lot of disruption among the other skaters which caused the officials to ban women from the championships. Three years later there was an event held just for women (Ederle). In 1927, the International Federation of Women’s Field Hockey Associations was formed. Teams from Scotland, Ireland, England and the U.S. competed in this association. Elizabeth Graham wore the first ever field hockey goalie mask made of wire fencing to protect her face. This was later picked up by a male field hockey player, Jacques Plante, who began to wear a similar mask after seeing Elizabeth’s (“Female Athletes”). This proved that women’s sports could influence men’s sports in a positive
2014 Issues Analysis By Dino Nuker Sport Safety: Should headgear be made mandatory for all contact sports? Injuries are common in most sports that have a contact component attached. Whether it’s at a professional level, or a school level, injuries are always bound to occur in contact sport. This analysis will look into the role headgear could, should and would play, and debates whether it should be made mandatory. Olympic sports such as Ice Hockey, Bicycle Riding and Baseball are just some examples that currently require athletes to wear a form of headgear.
fights in hockey than any other team sport), but parents should leave the body contact to
Ice hockey, a sport that has been in existence for over two hundred years, has become a fan favorite across the globe. From Canada to Sweden, you will be able to find some of the best ice hockey players in the world; both male and female. This pastime has instilled a unique tradition throughout the years of its practice by a combination of both physical skill and mental strength. Although it did not provide aid to globalization, it has created a worldwide culture that many people are proud to be a part of. Since its inception until now, there has been a great deal of gender stereotyping concerning the sport. Regardless, ice hockey will continue to be a lucrative market, as well as a cherished hobby for many years to come.
The future of hockey protective equipment is closer than originally thought. New helmets and equipment designs aid in the protection of all skill level...
Since football’s inception, it has been considered a manly sport. Young boys have been encouraged by their parents to participate in the game. For many boys, it is considered a rite of passage. However, football is a dangerous sport. A study conducted by the Center for Injury Research and Policy found, “an estimated 5.25 million football-related injuries among children and adolescents between 6 and 17 years of age were treated in U.S. emergency departments between 1990 and 2007. The annual number of football-related injuries increased 27 percent during the 18-year study period, jumping from 274,094 in 1990 to 346,772 in 2007” (Nation 201). These reported injuries include sprains and strains, broken bones, cracked ribs, torn ligaments, and concussions. A concussion usually happens when a player takes a hard hit to the head or is knocked unconscious on the playing field, and if not diagnosed and treated quickly, a concussion can result in death.
Ice hockey, just like any sport, requires both physical and mental skills in order for the athlete to perform to the best of their ability. Positions in ice hockey include the goaltender, wingers, centers, and defensemen. Each position requires different skills in order to succeed in the role and perform together as a team. There are three zones of play, the defensive, offensive and neutral zones, where players are expected to execute different strategies based on their position on the team. Physical conditioning and developing psychological abilities gives players a competitive edge.
In today’s world, the benefits of sports are huge. Sports are a way of teaching key skills that parents can’t such as sportsmanship, social values and many more. One of the most popular sports all over the world is soccer; hence soccer is the first sport that many children play and later on love. Within the past couple years, controversies have arisen over whether or not children should be heading the soccer ball while playing. For example, a header in soccer is when the player redirects the ball with their forehead, by taking it out of the air, to pass, or to shoot. With all the concussion prevention and media that has been centered on the NFL recently, the spotlight has turned over to soccer.
Participation in sports and games has long been a part of Native culture. The most significant example of a sport invented and played by Natives is lacrosse. Lacrosse is still designated as the official sport of Canada despite the overwhelming popularity of hockey (http://canada.gc.ca). Lacrosse was one of many varieties of indigenous stickball games being played by Native Americans and Canadians at the time of European contact. Almost exclusively a male team sport, it is distinguished from other stick and ball games, such as field hockey or shinny, by the use of a netted racquet with which to pick the ball off the ground, throw, catch and vault it into or past a goal to score a point.
Contact sports in America, like football and boxing, carry a rich history of the spirit of the game, and the feeling of victory. These games bring us together as we cry out and cheer for our team or fighter as they deliver the winning touchdown, or the knockout that brings them the undisputed champion belt. However, these players are facing injuries that can destroy their career and affect their brain for the rest of their lives. We shouldn’t outlaw contact sports, but we should force safety to become more important. If we want to keep our players safe and continue the tradition of the contact sports we enjoy as a country, then we must evolve our safety in sports, and change the way we view contact sports as a country.
Men also had greater magnitudes of contact compared to their female counterparts. Unfortunately most injuries in ice hockey are from blunt force or direct contact. Concussions are the most common injury in men’s and women’s collegiate hockey. Interestingly enough is that women’s hockey showed a higher rate of concussions than men’s hockey. The study pointed out various options for head-impact mechanisms in ice hockey. The playing area is solid ice and the boards surrounding the area consist of rigid boards. Pucks, when shot, can go over the speed of 80mph. Players can possibly exceed speeds of 30mph. Lastly, because ice hockey is a full contact sport, players are purposefully trying to collide with one another. All of these issues are reasonable mechanisms of head-injuries. This article also references another article which classifies concussion mechanisms in ice hockey into seven categories. These seven categories are: contact with another player, contact with the ice, contact with the boards or glass, contact with a stick, contact with the puck, contact with the goal, and no apparent contact. In this article's study about half of recorded
Even though the advantages of the helmet designs are extensive, the football players are put in dangerous and sometimes unexpected situations on the field. Players are running and hitting each other at full speed while not taking into consideration what they are doing, and considering the consequences. Sometimes with head related injuries, these players may not feel any symptoms until later on in the day, or even day...
Across numerous sports in the world, helmets are a staple of safety. Assumed to be a benefit, most athletes do not consider the risks of a helmet; both mental and physical risks. Society tells us that no matter what; a helmet will be safer than being exposed to harmful elements. There is also the idea that helmets are beneficial, but the way athletes use them causes more injuries than if a helmet had not been used at all. This culture, using your helmet as a tool, encourages more risky behavior for helmet wearers. Adventure writer and pilot, Lane Wallace argues that football culture is to blame for current helmet use, and that helmets are beneficial in her article “Do Sports Helmets Help or Hurt?” In his article “Disposable Heroes”, Neurologist David Weisman reasons that the worst helmets might be a better solution than better helmets.