The Brain Game
Is the greatest danger to the future of some of the world\u2019s most popular sports the potential for brain injury? We investigate if research can be trusted in light of the pressures doctors might feel under if findings adversely affect the standing of sport. Or is it simply enough for athletes to be aware of the risks posed before participating or should some sports be amended or even banned? www.concussioninsport.org
The real Blind Side\nWhen Carolina Panther\u2019s Michael Oher takes to the field for Super Bowl 50 next Sunday it\u2019ll be the latest episode in his fairy tale career. His life has already been turned a Hollywood blockbuster \u201cThe Blind Side\u201d. It earned Sandra Bullock a Best Actress Oscar for her portrayal of Oher\u2019s adopted mother Leigh Anne Tuohy. We hear from the real Leigh Anne, her husband Sean, inspirational high school Coach Hugh Freeze and of course Oher himself\u2026
Shoulda Put a Ring on It:\nOne of the quirks of American sport is that instead of being awarded medals for sporting achievement, winners are given Championship Rings. We speak to the jeweller who has made more than 30 of the 49 Super Bowl Championship rings to date. He reveals the astronomical cost of these bespoke handmade rings, how the designs have become more elaborate, and how their size has grown dramatically. The biggest is a size 25 made by William \u201cThe Refrigerator\u201d Perry.
X-Flies\nThe X-Games is an annual event that attracts the very best in extreme sport. Competitors fly, flip and fling to the amazement of a huge worldwide audience. In a months\u2019 time Oslo will play host to the event for the first time and the city is using it as a chance to improve the lives of youngsters in some of the poorest parts of the Norwegian capital as Simon Parker reports
Sporting Witness\u2026 heads back to the 1908 Olympic Marathon in London as Italian sweet-maker Dorando Pietri heads for victory and then\u2026 Collapses a few hundred yards from the line and being helped to the finish. Amid huge controversy, Pietri was disqualified but became an international celebrity thanks to newsreel footage of the race.
(Photo: Tom Queally with a facial injury at Yarmouth racecourse. Credit: Alan Crowhurst/Getty Images)