Douglasville Olympian Plans To Donate Brain For Concussion Study

DOUGLASVILLE, GA — There have hundreds of men who have played football and then donated their brains to concussion research, including Frank Gifford, Nick Buoniconti and Warren Sapp. But how many women have donated their brains and how many Olympic athletes?

Douglasville's own Elana Meyers Taylor, 33, has told the USA Today that she will donate her brain for concussion research when she dies. Meyers Taylor told the newspaper that she hopes more female athletes will do the same in the future.

Meyers Taylor will be the first woman to represent Team USA in bobsled at three Olympic Winter Games after she announced earlier this month that she will be headed to Pyeongchang, South Korea, in 2018.

The driver of the USA Bobsled Team has pledged her brain to the Concussion Legacy Foundation for research on concussions and chronic traumatic encephalopathy, according to USA Today. She told the newspaper that she's had at least four concussions she knows of, one that almost ended her career.

Fellow Olympian and Team USA hockey star, Angela Ruggiero, also plans to donate her brain to the concussion legacy foundation when she dies.

“Women are largely unrepresented in brain donations. And concussions affect women more than men, so they need to get research out,” Meyers Taylor told USA Today.

For more details about Meyers Taylor's donation to concussion research, visit the USA Today article.

Meyers Taylor looked to another Olympic athlete for her original inspiration.

"One of my favorite Olympic memories was watching Vonetta Flowers win an Olympic Gold Medal in 2002," said Meyers Taylor. "She was the first African American to win an Olympic Gold Medal and it was in the sport of bobsled. So at that moment, I really believed that I could have an opportunity in bobsled."

Georgia will send two athletes to represent the United States in the Winter Games. In addition to Meyers Taylor, Chris Kinney of Stockbridge, will compete in the men's bobsled, four-man/push.

The bobsledding events will be held between Feb. 18 and 21. Women's events will be held Feb. 20 and 21.

• Feb. 18, 8:05 p.m. Two-man runs 1 and 2
• Feb. 19, 8:05 p.m. Two-man runs 3 and 4
• Feb. 20, 8:05 p.m. Two-woman runs 1 and 2
• Feb. 21, 8:40 p.m. Two-woman runs 3 and 4

The Winter Olympics competition kicked off Thursday and the ceremony Opening Ceremony was Friday. Sunday, Feb. 25, will be the Closing Ceremony. Full and detailed competition schedules, TV listings and live streaming schedules will be available on NBCOlympics.com prior to the beginning of the Games.

About Elana Meyers Taylor from TeamUSA website:

Meyers Taylor married U.S. national team bobsledder Nicholas Taylor on April 24, 2014. She has two caps with the U.S. rugby 7s team, playing in tournaments in Guangzhou, China, and Amsterdam. Her post-bobsled career goal is to become the CEO of the USOC. Nine-time U.S. National Push Champion, as a pilot in 2017, 2016, 2015, 2013, 2012, 2011 and 2010; as a brakeman in 2009 and 2008.

Four-time USABS Women's Bobsled Athlete of the Year (2017, 2015, 2014, 2012); Two-time Women's Bobsled Athletes' Choice Award (2013, 2012); 2015 Team of the Year Award; 2011 Rookie of the Year.
Has both her bachelor's and master's degree from George Washington University, where she played softball. Also has her MBA from Keller Graduate School of DeVry University.

Played professional softball prior to bobsledding...Interned for the IOC in Lusanne, Switzerland. Starting her fifth year as an Athlete Mentor for Classroom Champions, a non-profit organization partnering Olympic and Paralympic athletes with students and teachers in underserved communities. Currently working with students in the San Francisco Bay area and New York City.

Name: Elana Meyers Taylor
Sport: Bobsled
Height: 5'8"
Weight: 175 lbs.
DOB: 10/10/1984
Birthplace: Oceanside, Calif.
Hometown: Douglasville, Ga.

Also from the TeamUSA website:

Olympic Experience

• 2014 Women's Bobsled- SILVER in Sochi (2/14)
• 2010 Women's Bobsled for pilot Erin Pac- BRONZE in Vancouver (2010)

Most recent World Championship Experience

• 2017 Women's Bobsled- GOLD in Koenigssee (2/17)
• 2017 Team Event - 6th in Koenigssee (2/17)
• 2016 Women's Bobsled - BRONZE in Igls (2/16)
• 2016 Team Event - 7th in Igls (2/16)

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Photo: American women's bobsled pilot Elana Meyers Taylor, courtesy of Taylor