loughby) as he faces the biggest obstacle of his life, Post wrote on Instagram last week.BMX riders have rallied around

DETROIT -- The Michigan High School Athletic Association says its unique sideline concussion testing program for athletes in football and other sports is having a positive impact, though long-term funding is an issue as it heads into its second and final year.Member schools in the pilot program removed players for possible concussions at a higher rate than schools that were not, Executive Director Jack Roberts said.Theyre proving that theyre good, but people are going to have to respond with support locally, Roberts said. We cannot sustain this forever.His group on Monday released results of its first-ever head-injury survey of more than 750 member high schools from 2015-2016 sports. It received data from nearly every school.The association started the program last fall with 62 high schools. It includes baseline testing of athletes in football and other sports to help with concussion diagnosis.The association spent $10,000 last school year to start the program. It expects to spend $30,000 this year but will have fewer schools -- 34 -- involved because of the expense and commitment. They will also concentrate on sports that have the highest incidence of head injury.I hope that we can demonstrate their value and encourage sponsorship, grant support, Roberts said. But its going to take I think some investment by the people in the communities. The moms and dads are going to have to think that this is important and worth to contributing to make the programs safer for their children.Here is some information on whats happening in Michigan:WHAT IS BASELINE TESTINGBaseline testing is a combination of memory, reaction time, attention and stress assessments. It is done in major pro sports because it is considered an objective and individualized tool to help decide whether to remove an athlete from a game. While all states have laws that address preventing concussions in youth sports, many are weak and none require baseline testing.WHY IT MATTERSMichigan schools reported 4,452 head injuries in boys and girls sport, or 5.9 per school. Contact sports had the most head injuries. Ranking first was 11-player football with 49 head injuries per 1,000 participants, followed by ice hockey with 38 and 8-player football with 34. Girls soccer had 30 injuries per 1,000 participants, and girls basketball ranked fifth with 29 injuries per 1,000.But that is likely only part of the picture. Health and safety advocates fear concussions often go undetected in high schools because of inconsistent protocols at districts unwilling or unable to spend money for detection. Its often on players to self-report concussions, or on coaches, who have many responsibilities and sometimes little training, to recognize symptoms.WHY NOT ALL SCHOOLSSchools typically dont argue with the benefit of testing, but cash-strapped districts often say the cost of offering such programs is prohibitive.PROGRAMS AVAILABLEMany sideline concussion-testing programs are on the market. Michigan is testing the Illinois-based King-Devick Test affiliated with the Mayo Clinic and Maryland-based XLNTbrain Sport. The association provides them for free to the participating schools. Long term, Roberts thinks the association could fund it in part with a $3 to $5 fee per student. But the association is also working to get grants.HOW IT WORKSBaselines with the XLNTbrain Sport are determined during 30-minute sessions by athletes at computers. The tests measure reaction time, attention, memory and stress by completing a series of exercises that involve such things as word recognition. Athletes suspected of a head injury undergo a sideline assessment done in about five minutes with an iPhone or tablet app. It assesses memory by providing words for the athlete to remember. It asks questions that require the athlete to recall the hit. The athletes also hold the phone as they stand for 20 seconds with eyes open and then closed to check balance. That assessment is compared to the athletes baseline data to help determine whether they can return to play.WHATS NEXT IN MICHIGANRoberts hopes that universities, health care systems and the National Federation of State High School Associations will help analyze the data from last year and this year. The association plans specifically to work with Michigan State Universitys Institute for the Study of Youth Sports to explore possible changes and additions in coaches education.----Follow Roger Schneider on Twitter at https://twitter.com/rogschneider Water Bottle Hydro Flask 24 oz Standard Mouth Lava . -- Ryan Getzlaf grabbed the three pucks wrapped in tape and held them up to his chest in the Anaheim Ducks dressing room for a celebration nine seasons in the making. Water Bottle Hydro Flask 24 oz Standard Mouth Lemon . -- Ty Montgomery had 290 all-purpose yards and two touchdowns, and fifth-ranked Stanford held on to beat No. http://www.hydroflaskaustralia.com/hydro-flask-lid-cap-standard-mouth-black-flex-cap.html . They hope to persuade the other team owners and commissioner Roger Goodell to put pressure on Redskins owner Daniel Snyder to drop the nickname they find offensive. "Given the way the meeting transpired," Ray Halbritter, an Oneida representative and leader of the "Change the Mascot Campaign," said Wednesday, "it became somewhat evident they were defending the continued use of the name. Water Bottle Hydro Flask 32 oz Wide Mouth Flamingo . Kuznetsov, who was selected by the Capitals in the first round of the 2010 NHL Entry Draft, has been playing for his hometown team Chelyabinsk Traktor of the KHL. Hydro Flask LID & CAP Black Wide Mouth Flex Cap . For the Wild it was their first win of the season and they now have a record of 1-1-2 while the Jets fall to 2-2. Jets start a six game home stand Friday with another divisional game, home to the Dallas Stars. Australian BMX cyclist Sam Willoughby is in rehab following a training accident that left the 2012 London Olympics silver medalist with two fractured vertebrae and no movement below his chest.Willoughby was hurt last month in the crash at his home track at the U.S. Olympic Training Center in Chula Vista, California, the riders family has said in a statement through Cycling Australia.Willoughby was airlifted to a hospital, and doctors performed an operation that involved replacing one vertebra with a titanium cage, and the fusion of two others.His fiancee, U.S. BMX rider Alise Post, and his family have set up a website to update his condition. The family said Willoughby has slowly regained the use of his arms, and that he is slowly regaining sensations in his legs, but still had no movement from his chest down.He is keeping a positive attitude and working hard toward his goal of walking down the aisle with his fiancee, Willoughbys friend, Tyler Brown, who runs the public track at the Chula Vista facility, said this week.Post won a silver medal at this years Summer Games in Rio de Janeiro. Willoughby was a favorite in the mens draw, but finished sixth in the final. A wedding date was set for April 15, 2017.Post has put her schedule on hold to stay cloose to Willoughby, missing a race in South Carolina and skipping a trip to the White House for U.dddddddddddd. Olympians.As much as I would love to be celebrating my recent Olympics success ... right now the most important thing for me is to be here for (Willoughby) as he faces the biggest obstacle of his life, Post wrote on Instagram last week.BMX riders have rallied around Willoughby, scheduling fundraisers to help pay for medical bills. One such event is being held by Olympic gold medalist Connor Fields on Oct. 14 in Boulder City, Nevada. Arielle Martin-Verhaaren, who qualified for the 2012 Olympics, is holding a charity event in Hampton, Virginia on Oct. 22; and Brown is organizing an event at the Chula Vista track on Nov. 5.The BMX community have been amazing coming together to help a fallen rider and do everything they can to raise funds for him in his time of need, Brown said in an email.---Online:Website for information and updates from Willoughby family: https://road2recovery.com/cause-view/strengthfor91/---Follow Genaro Armas at: https://twitter.com/GArmasAP---This story corrects spelling of finacee throughout. ' ' '