ST. PAUL, Minn., Oct. 9, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- TackleBar™ Football
has a lower injury rate than both flag and tackle football. A new
study, published in The Orthopaedic Journal of Sports
Medicine this week, shows TackleBar has an injury rate seven
times lower than any other form of football. The study was authored
by Dr. Uzma Samadani, MD, PhD and
her team in conjunction with the University of
Minnesota. Dr. Samadani is an internationally recognized
neurosurgeon and a leading brain injury researcher.
"What is important for children is to get them active - to get
kids outside playing and running around," said Dr. Samadani. "Kids
love football and reducing risk associated with conventional
tackling is logical. Our work investigating injury rates in
football and its alternatives ensures parents, coaches and league
administrators have vital information to make decisions in the best
interest of our kids. Our study shows that TackleBar has a more
favorable safety profile than other forms of football."
TackleBar is a modified version of football currently being used
by teams and leagues in 27 states and three countries outside the
US. Players wear traditional football equipment, plus a harness
around their midsection that holds two removable foam bars on the
lower back. The design teaches and requires players to use proper
form tackling technique while wrapping up the ball carrier and then
ripping off a foam bar to end the play. This approach eliminates
the final step of tackling a player to the ground, where most
injuries occur. Unlike flag football, TackleBar teaches safer
contact and sound fundamentals, preparing young players for an
eventual transition into tackle football.
To gather data on TackleBar, researchers followed nearly 1,000
nine-year-old to 14-year-old kids across 56 teams. In almost 16,000
practices and games over a full three-month season, there were only
five injuries that required a player to miss the next practice or
game. There were no reported head injuries. TackleBar players
averaged less than one injury per 1,000 practices and games.
"We are incredibly proud of those numbers, and it proves what
we've known all along: TackleBar is a safer version of the game
because it eliminates the big hits and requires players to use
proper technique," said TackleBar CEO Tim
Healy. "We've been hearing stories for the last three years
about how much safer TackleBar is. Now, the data supports what
we've been hearing from parents and coaches."
Recently, TackleBar entered a strategic partnership with Riddell
that joined two teams dedicated to preserving the great game of
football. Riddell's strong team of sales representatives across the
country will now be able to educate coaches and league
administrators on the benefits of TackleBar as well as supply them
with the innovative equipment. TackleBar debuted in 2016 and has
seen double-digit growth each year with participating leagues. The
game has been embraced and endorsed by football coaches, parents
and kids, as well as former NFL players.
About TackleBar:
TackleBar Football is a
modified game that preserves the tradition and spirit of football
while providing an ideal transition between flag football and
tackle football. The TackleBar harness teaches safer contact and
sound fundamentals, while providing kids an authentic football
experience that decreases injuries and increases participation.
Since 2016, TackleBar has been used by youth football leagues as a
game format, and by high school and college programs as a tool for
teaching safer contact. TackleBar was a finalist in the NFL's First
and Future competition in 2019, and is endorsed by the Minnesota
Vikings. Learn more at: tacklebar.com
Media Contact: Brigid Ling
Email: brigid@tacklebar.com
Website: tacklebar.com
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SOURCE TackleBar