Most concussion attention in the sports world has been focused on the cartoonish violence of the NFL (and rightfully so), but the concussions to Crosby and Morneau, a couple of top-level stars in other sports, came on fairly tame-looking plays. When Morneau suffered his original concussion, prior to the 2010 All-Star break, he was expected to recover and return within a week. Instead, 2011 has turned out to be more or less a lost season for Morneau as he continues to deal with the injury’s effects.
There is a tendency in the sports world to expect the injuries that superstar athletes suffer to match the spectacle and drama of the contests themselves – we are awed by NASCAR crashes, we marvel at the expressionless face that Muhammed Ali is left with after the pounding he took at the end of his career and we still immortalize Joe Thiesman’s legendary broken leg.
But there is no spectacle in seeing our heroes bump their heads, and then stay nauseated for months or years. It pulls them down way too close to our level, and then we suddenly find it hard to hate Sidney Crosby as much as used to, because he seems too human now.
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