Sports Desk

RSU 10 should be commended for finally addressing the issue of school-activity related concussions. There has been an increase in incidents during recent years, especially nationally with the NFL leading the charge.

The problem has filtered throughout each state and school system. It's quite evident that football is a contact sport, however, soccer can be equally as dangerous when players are battling for loose balls.

But head injuries can also occur in physical education class or recess activity.

There was 19 head injuries reported during the 2011-12 RSU 10 school year, with the majority resulting in the aforementioned football and soccer. This past fall was no exception because incidents cropped up nearly every week. There is a fine line when trying to access whether or not a student/athlete is ready to return to their respective sport.

The obvious answer is to err on the side of caution, but even this can be met with resistance. That's because the athlete might be eager to resume because at that point the teenager is 10 feet tall and bullet-proof (and don't I know it) and not thinking of any possible longterm effects.

Even some parents will question why Johnny or Susie isn't able to play. Once these policies are adopted, the proper protocol will be listed and must be adhered to before an individual is cleared to play.

A concussion is a jostling of the brain that can be caused by a direct blow or even a sudden stop. It doesn’t necessarily cause unconsciousness, but symptoms can include headaches, nausea, dizziness, sensitivity to light and noise and trouble concentrating. Through this effort, a proactive approach is being taken to preventing multiple concussions and furthermore the possibility of a long term issue that generally associate from a kid returning to play too soon.

Former Rumford resident Lynn Fuller Barlow proved her weight in gold by setting a personal best to win an event at the WPC Power lifting Championships in Las Vegas in November. The world event featured over 700 lifters over six days. Barlow, a 1977 graduate of Rumford High School, is a testament of the human spirit for having persevered through adversity.

Several years ago, Barlow was diagnosed with leukemia and underwent a bone-marrow transplant.

On the Campbell Conference, there were several football players from Mountain Valley and Dirigo who earned All-academic honors. The Falcons were Brooke Dolloff, Jake Theriault, Adam Volkenick, Matt Hosie and Colin Merrill. The Cougars were Brett Whittemore and Austin Bernard.