VOA标准英语2012--US Youth Football Group Issues Rules to Prevent Head Injuries

 

US Youth Football Group Issues Rules to Prevent Head Injuries

Bumping heads, part of the game

The rough-and-tumble game of American football. Players colliding.

It is not a sight many parents want to see.

In recent years, helmets have been designed to prevent skull¹ fractures, but neurosurgeon Julian Bailes, who serves as chairman of the Pop Warner medical advisory² board, says even the best helmet can't prevent a concussion³ -- or brain damage.

"You could have padding six inches thick, and the brain's still freely able to move and twist and tear from time to time, explained Bailes. "But in these cases, we worry about brain impact, brain damage, brain injury."

Law requires better saftey rules

That's what happened in 2006 to Zackery Lystedt. The 13-year-old athlete in Washington state suffered severe brain damage from repeated concussions⁴ he sustained during a football game. The state's governor later signed a law forbidding coaches from sending injured players back onto the field without a doctor's approval. Similar restrictions⁵ were enacted⁶ in other states, and adopted by the National Football League.

Young athletes suffer more than 2 million sports-related head injuries every year, and according to Dr. Bailes, by the time players finish college football, they've experienced as many as eight-thousand hits to the head or brain.

The Pop Warner Little Scholars program teaches football basics to young players. More than 5,000 teams play under the Pop Warner banner. Executive director Jon Butler says the group's new safety rules require that players must be less than three meters from each other during head-on tackling practice to limit the speed and force of impact. The new rules only protect players during practice. 

"Teams spend multiple more hours in practice than they do in games. More injuries occur in practice, just because of the increased time," said Butler.

Whether it is the Pop Warner league or the NFL, Dr. Bailes says practice games frequently involve a rougher, faster style of play. He hopes the rule changes will reduce concussions by at least 60 percent. "We...right off the bat...[we] will eliminate the majority of brain impacts and concussions which occur...and we'll see how that translates later to the play of the game itself," he said.

NFL faces class-action lawsuit⁷

Meanwhile, a class-action lawsuit filed recently against the National Football League on behalf of 2,000 former players alleges⁸ the NFL withheld⁹ information about traumatic brain injuries during their years of play. Negotiations¹⁰ between the players' union and team owners have already resulted in some changes to protect players during practice.

The new safety rules for the littlest players take effect this August when the Pop Warner league's new season gets underway. 

1 skull   

n.头骨；颅骨

参考例句：

• The skull bones fuse between the ages of fifteen and twenty-five.头骨在15至25岁之间长合。
• He fell out of the window and cracked his skull.他从窗子摔了出去，跌裂了颅骨。

2 advisory   

adj.劝告的，忠告的，顾问的，提供咨询

参考例句：

• I have worked in an advisory capacity with many hospitals.我曾在多家医院做过顾问工作。
• He was appointed to the advisory committee last month.他上个月获任命为顾问委员会委员。

3 concussion   

n.脑震荡；震动

参考例句：

• He was carried off the field with slight concussion.他因轻微脑震荡给抬离了现场。
• She suffers from brain concussion.她得了脑震荡。

4 concussions   

n.震荡( concussion的名词复数 )；脑震荡；冲击；震动

参考例句：

• People who have concussions often trouble thinking or remembering. 患脑震荡的人通常存在思考和记忆障碍。 来自互联网
• Concussions also make a person feel very tired or angry. 脑震荡也会使人感觉疲倦或愤怒。 来自互联网

5 restrictions   

约束( restriction的名词复数 )； 管制； 制约因素； 带限制性的条件（或规则）

参考例句：

• I found the restrictions irksome. 我对那些限制感到很烦。
• a snaggle of restrictions 杂乱无章的种种限制

6 enacted   

制定（法律），通过（法案）( enact的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• legislation enacted by parliament 由议会通过的法律
• Outside in the little lobby another scene was begin enacted. 外面的小休息室里又是另一番景象。 来自英汉文学 - 嘉莉妹妹

7 lawsuit   

n.诉讼，控诉

参考例句：

• They threatened him with a lawsuit.他们以诉讼威逼他。
• He was perpetually involving himself in this long lawsuit.他使自己无休止地卷入这场长时间的诉讼。

8 alleges   

断言，宣称，辩解( allege的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• The newspaper article alleges that the mayor is corrupt. 报纸上断言该市长腐败。
• Steven was tardy this morning and alleges that his bus was late. 史提芬今天早上迟到的说词是公车误点了。

9 withheld   

withhold过去式及过去分词

参考例句：

• I withheld payment until they had fulfilled the contract. 他们履行合同后，我才付款。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• There was no school play because the principal withheld his consent. 由于校长没同意，学校里没有举行比赛。 来自《简明英汉词典》

10 negotiations   

协商( negotiation的名词复数 )； 谈判； 完成（难事）； 通过

参考例句：

• negotiations for a durable peace 为持久和平而进行的谈判
• Negotiations have failed to establish any middle ground. 谈判未能达成任何妥协。