NPR

O.K., I'm going to say it.

Anyone else find it fucking strange that the sport of Rugby is parading around Doddie Weir, calling him an an inspiration, when it is highly likely Professional Rugby caused it?

What are supporters thinking when they see him knowing Rugby most likely caused his condition?
Do they rationalise like addicts? "Oh he's fine, it isn't that bad, oh and we are all clapping...soooo that makes it O.K.".

He isn't a war veteran, it wasn't an accident, he is a bloke who played rugby and it most likely (lets say it did) gave him Motor Neurons.
Do cigarette companies parade lung cancer victims around the boardroom, and clap them and tell them they are brave and inspirational?
What sort of cuit member and cigarette lover would allow themselves to be that?
"Come play rugby, OK you have 25% chance of brain damage and neuro degenerative disease if you do it for long enough, but look you can be inspirational"?

Rugby supporters believe their sport and his life is worth it, otherwise they would look at Doddie, put two and two together and leave the stadium feeling revolted and swear never to go back.

Are you going to clap and cheer your way through all these victims of your sport, acting like they are " inspirational", overcoming their personal tragedy of you all thinking "well its worth it for eighty minutes of entertainment"?

If he started legal proceedings against Rugby, would he even be welcome?

You don't see Ryan Jones or Alex Popham on the millennium stadium turf before the match, waving.


https://www.independent.co.uk/sport/ru ... 845.html

A study led by the University of Glasgow looking at former Scotland internationals – from both the amateur era and later professional players – found ex-rugby players had more than twice the risk of a neurodegenerative disease, and a 15-times higher risk of a motor neurone disease diagnosis.

Yeah, I was thinking as well when Ritchie and Whitelock were greeting him before the match - what must be going through their minds?

It's probably a bit more complicated than just rugby - apparently exposure to substances commonly used in farming elevates risk of MND as well. So for Weir it's likely to be a double whammy of farming and rugby.

And on the 15x increase - normal annual incidence of MND is 3.9/100,000 in men, so rugby potentially elevates that to 60/100,000 or a risk of 0.06% per year. As devastating a diagnosis as it is, that's still not a number that would feature as a major concern in day-to-day decisions on how to live your life.

But really sad to see the demented giraffe wasted away in a wheelchair like that.

I'm a bit loath to respond to this, but..

I think it is more that he is a hugely popular figure who instead of quietly fading away has started a foundation that has raised millions of pounds for research and to support people in similar condition, the vast, vast majority of whom have never played rugby.

Probably worth saying that his foundation is still not convinced by the rugby link to MND.