Caring for Former Athletes who live with Neurodegeneration

As the links between sport, brain injuries and various neurodegeneration continue to be established, there is an increasing focus on the lives of those living with the consequences of their sporting careers. NTU’s team of scholars working in this area seeks to explore the lives of those people and their families as a means of further our understanding of how they might be supported. This work builds on existing work being conducting at NTU within the SHAPE research centre. It draws together colleagues from across the institution, to work with academics at The University of Nottingham, Loughborough University, Sheffield University and Manchester Metropolitan University, community partners including Dementia UK, Forget Me Notts, Trent Dementia, and members of the public whose lives have been affected by a career in sport.

This work is supported by funding from the Foundation for the Sociology of Health and Illness and NTU's Health and Wellbeing Strategic Research Theme. These funds help the team tell the unique stories of former sportspersons, their families and carers. The research team focus on being able to understand how to align patient and family carer needs, with care provision and various services. This initial stage of the project has four aims:

• Illustrate the wide range of emotions and experiences of those living with dementia their families and carers.
• Explore the ways that roles within the family may shift as changes in health and physical/cognitive abilities occur.
• Highlight the lives of former athletes who live with the physical and mental consequences of their sporting careers.
• Ensure the study is co-produced from the outset by working in collaboration with people affected by neurodegeneration and other stakeholders

After this work is completed the project team will organise a knowledge sharing events. These will engage with patients, carers, local communities, and academics. This initial stage of the project will form the foundation from which a larger scale project will be proposed to research councils.

If you would like to be involved in some form or have any questions or comments, please do contact the project lead Dr Christopher R. Matthews – Christopher.matthews@ntu.ac.uk

We also have our Sports and Brain Health Learning Neurodegeneration Booklet

Steering group

Professor Alison Pilnick, Professor of Language, Health and Society, Manchester Metropolitan University

Dr Greg Hollins, Welcome Trust Research Fellow, University of Sheffield.

Dr Jane Rowley, Trent Dementia

Professor Dominic Malcolm, Professor of Sociology of Sport, Loughborough University.

Dr Karen Harrison-Dening, Dementia UK

Penny Watson, Brain injuries activist and campaigner

Dr Nigel Plant, Forget Me Notts

Dr Neil Chadborn, Senior Research Fellow, University of Nottingham

Dr Reem AlHashmi, Brain Injuries Researcher

Professor Tom Dening, Head of the Centre for Dementia in the Institute of Mental Health at Nottingham

• Hardwicke, J., Matthews, C., Parry, K., Lang, M., Walker, D., Shaw, M., Piggin, J., Bullingham, R., Hurst, H. and Anderson, E. (2025). Preventing sport-acquired brain damage in children: ‘If in doubt, sit them out’ on its own is not good enough. Performance Enhancement and Health, online first.
• Hardwicke, J., Hurst, H.T. and Matthews, C.R. (2024). ‘Getting back on the bike’: risk, injury and sport-related concussion in competitive road cycling. Sociology of Sport Journal, 42(1), 66–76.
• Hardwicke, J., AlHashmi, R., Forbes, D., Paechter, C., Pocock, M., Taylor, K., Yeagers, D. and Matthews, C. (2024). Is gender equality in brain damage ‘progress’ for women and sport? International Review for the Sociology of Sport. 59(6), 941-953.
• AlHashmi, R., and Matthews, C.R. (2021). Athletes understanding of concussion – uncertainty, certainty and the 'expert' on the street. Qualitative Research in Sport, Exercise and Health, 14(3), 444–459.
• Matthews, C., Watson, P., Dening, T., Varley, I., Hunter, A., Malcolm, D.,  AlHashmi, R. (2023). Concussion in sport – What do we know, and what’s next? : Proceedings from a symposium at Nottingham Trent University, UK. Communications in Kinesiology, 1(5). Symposium: Link.
• Matthews, C. R. (2021). ‘The fog soon clears’: Bodily negotiations, embodied understandings, competent body action and ‘brain injuries’ in boxing. International Review for the Sociology of Sport, 56(5), 719–738.  Journal: Link