All Articles by Brooke de Lench

Sarah Burke's Injury: Hard To Prevent, But Not Always Fatal

I have tried to understand how Sarah Burke's freestyle ski injury actually ended up resulting in her death this week. The information, at first, was pretty sketchy.  Ultimately, we learned that, when Sarah's head snapped back in her fall, the whiplash caused a tear (dissection) of her vertebral artery, which cut off the blood to her brain, causing her to go into cardiac arrest and resulting in irreversible brain damage.

How does a tear to the vertebral artery like the one that took Sarah Burke's life happen and can it be prevented? MomsTeam's Brooke de Lench asked Dr. David Geier, an orthopaedic surgeon and sports medicine specialist and the Director of MUSC Sports Medicine in Charleston, South Carolina to explain in a guest article.

The Best Thing Tom Brady, Sr. May Have Done For His Son: Nothing

Yesterday, I had a chance to talk with Tom Brady, Sr. in his Boston office. Yes, that  Tom Brady. Father of  New England Patriot quarterback Tom Brady.

It was actually the second time I had had a chance to talk with Tom.  The first time was at a seminar in Harvard Square a year or two back in which he was on the panel. This time we had a chance to talk at length.  I came away with a much better understanding of the "recipe" he used in raising a super hero: not only an elite athlete, but a wonderful person, too.Tom Brady and Tom Brady, Sr. embracing

The best thing Tom Brady's father may have done for him was not talking to his college football coach at the University of Michigan about his son's lack of playing time.

A Shining Star Extinguished: MomsTeam Remembers Sarah Burke

We at MomsTeam are deeply saddened by the passing of Sarah Burke, Canadian freestyle skier and a pioneer of the superpipe event, who died January 19th from injuries she received in an accident nine days earlier while training for the upcoming Winter X Games at Park City Mountain, Utah.

Sarah was a freeskiing pioneer, six-time X Games gold medalist and beloved wife, daughter, sister and friend; an athlete whose star shone brightly well beyond her sport; a star whose light has now, tragically, been extinguished, forever.  We join in expressing our condolences to her family and at the loss of such a remarkable young woman. 

MomsTeam are deeply saddened by the passing of Sarah Burke, Canadian freestyle skier and a pioneer of the superpipe event, who died January 19th from injuries she received in an accident nine days earlier while training for the upcoming Winter X Games at Park City Mountain, Utah. Brooke de Lench offers this remembrance.

Kids Who Delay Sports Specialization More Coordinated and Physically Fit, Study Finds

Boys participating in more than one sport before age 12 are more physically fit and have better gross motor coordination than those who specialize in a single sport early, says a new study.  Whether the reason is because they play multiple sports or because the best athletes choose not to specialize early is unclear.

Celebrate Dr. King By Teaching Youth Athletes About Character

Twenty-five years after Martin Luther King Jr.'s life was first honored with a national holiday and nearly 50 years after the civil rights leader's "I Have a Dream" speech, black and white sports fans alike view the sports world as far more racially progressive and unifying than the rest of society, according to a recent online survey conducted for ESPN.Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

First Winter Youth Olympics Opens in Innsbruck

The inaugural Winter Youth Olympics began a ten-day run last night in Innsbruck, Austria. The opening ceremony featured classic and modern dance, and video flashbacks to 1964 and 1976, when Innsbruck hosted the Winter Olympics.Innsbruck 2012 Youth Olympic Games logo

The inaugural Winter Youth Olympics began last night in Innsbruck, Austria, bringing together 1,059 elite youth athletes aged 15 to 18 from 70 nations to compete in 63 medal events in seven sports.

Protective Cups, Jock Straps, Supporters: Essential Equipment for Contact and Collision Sports

When your son plays contact or collision sports, there is always the risk of testicular injury.  To protect against such injury, boys need to wear a cup.

High School Coaches of the Year: A Flawed Selection Process?

As it has for the past thirty years, the National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS) Coaches Association yesterday announced its 2011 National Coaches of the Year, honoring high school coaches in the top 10 girls and boys sports by participation numbers, along with one coach in another high school sport.

According to the NFHS, the awards are presented to individuals who have gone above and beyond and who exemplify the highest standards of sportsmanship, ethical conduct and moral character, and who carry the endorsement of his or her respective state high school association.

The 20 high school coaches recognized by the National Federation of State High School Association Coach's Association are no doubt great coaches deserving of the awards, but perhaps it is time for the NFHS to put in place a process for identifying the coaches on the other end of the spectrum, not by surveying other coaches, but by asking all the other stakeholders - players, athletic trainers, and parents - who see them every day what they think. 

Parents Who Interfere: Was Quitting The Only Way Out For Coach?


This weekend a father from Michigan sent me an article in the Detroit News about a highly successful high school basketball coach in his daughter's league who had just quit as a result of what the newspaper described as "extreme parental interference."

He wanted to know what I would suggest to the coach, who happened to be a personal friend.

Coaches who don't have problems with pushy parents tend to be the great communicators; they let them know where they stand early, before the season even starts, at a preseason meeting.

Dehydration in Sports: A Year-Round Concern

Whether your tween or teen is at the rink, on the court, in the pool, or on the slopes, the need to keep them well-hydrated so they can perform at their best is the same in winter as on the hottest days of summer.