A Former Team USA National Athlete Launches Mission to Combat the Silent Epidemic of CTE in Olympic Winter Sports

Former Team USA Bobsled Member William Person launches GoFundMe to raise funds for a CTE Recovery Center after Industry Fails to Compensate for Brain Injuries.

WOODLAND HILLS,, CA, UNITED STATES, July 28, 2025 /EINPresswire.com/ -- Former 9-year Team USA bobsledder William Person, lead plaintiff in the high-profile class action lawsuit spotlighted by The New York Times, Sports Litigation Alert, and Courthouse News Service, is taking matters into his own hands after rejecting a proposed settlement that offered “evaluation, but no treatment or compensation” for Team USA Olympic Bobsled athletes suffering from Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy (CTE).

In addition, Person says the warning to new athletes about the dangers of repetitive concussions, which are a regular part of the sport, is not adequate in the proposed settlement for young athletes to truly understand the repercussions of the repeated concussions, including a constant state of brain fog, mass depression, and intense headaches for life, which are leading to suicide among athletes around the world.

Person, whose story was first widely recognized in 2021 through media stories about “Sled Head”— the bobsled equivalent of football’s concussion crisis—has announced a GoFundMe campaign to raise $500,000 to establish a 501(c)(3) foundation that will provide free Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy (HBOT) to athletes and veterans battling the devastating effects of repetitive brain trauma. Interested parties are invited to donate to the campaign at https://gofund.me/93ff9c6e.

“I stood alone in court last month against all parties—including my own lawyers—because I refuse to sign off on an offer that does nothing to treat the brain injuries of the athletes—a condition we have solely based on the nature of our sport, and that doesn’t do enough to properly warn new athletes of the repercussions of the repeated concussions,” said Person. “Junior Seau changed the NFL forever when he took his life and preserved his brain for research. My teammates Pavle Jovanovic and Steve Holcomb also took their own lives because of the pain and misery of CTE, and many others around the world have joined them. This is a serious issue! It’s time we protect the brains of our winter athletes with the same urgency we do in football.”

THE SILENT CRISIS: CTE BEYOND FOOTBALL
Person’s mission underscores what appears as an overlooked epidemic in sports: while the NFL has taken major steps to address concussions and long-term cognitive decline, winter sports have largely escaped the same scrutiny—even though Olympic bobsledders endure G-forces 10 times greater than fighter pilots, combined with violent ice vibrations likened to “shaken baby syndrome.”

• In 2020, Person’s close friend and teammate Pavle Jovanovic died by suicide and was diagnosed Stage 4 CTE. “I remember Pavle calling me speaking gibberish. He hung up, frustrated, because I couldn’t understand his words. Soon after, he hung himself. It haunts me to this day,” said Person.

• Studies continue to reveal athletes in sports from hockey to soccer to Olympic bobsledding show markers of CTE, a neurodegenerative disease associated with aggression, depression, memory loss, and tragically, suicide.

A PERSONAL PATH TO HEALING — AND GIVING BACK
Inspired by Joe Namath’s public journey using HBOT to regain mental clarity, Person sought the same treatments.

“Before Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy, I was on my hands and knees crawling in my own house, convinced I was dying. Today, I still struggle, but my quality of life has dramatically improved,” Person said. “Some athletes have fully reversed their symptoms by using HBOT. This therapy is a lifeline for people like us with CTE, and I’m determined to make it accessible to every athlete and military veteran who needs it.”

Through his new nonprofit—William Person CTE Recovery Center—Person plans to:
• Provide free HBOT treatments at his Midwest lakeside property and future St. Louis facility.
• Cover travel, lodging, food, and ongoing support for athletes too impaired to navigate care alone.
• Fund CTE-neurology specialists and trained HBOT doctors who understand these complex cases and won’t dismiss them as “ordinary headaches” or “depression.”
• Expand into additional cutting-edge modalities to combat cognitive decline.

WHY NOW — AND WHY REPORTERS SHOULD CARE
Person’s story is one of hard-earned hope and deep urgency.

“The class action lawsuit was meant to protect and heal us. But they offered nothing—no compensation, no treatment. Just evaluations. That’s unacceptable. We’re not test subjects. We’re human beings suffering because of our sports,” he said.

This mission is especially poignant following The New York Times’ and Courthouse News Service’s original reporting on Person’s lawsuit, and the tragic coverage of his teammates Jovanovic and Holcomb, along with the many others suffering with CTE and committing suicide because of it.

HOW YOU CAN HELP
• Donate or share Person’s fundraiser: https://gofund.me/93ff9c6e
• Contact for interviews or to cover this story: Jennifer@engagementpr.com; 949-933-4300.

Person is calling on sports leagues, medical researchers, fellow athletes, parents, and the public to rally behind this cause—because as he puts it:
“We can’t wait for another funeral to decide brain injuries matter. Together, we can save lives.”

Support in Court
Person goes back to court Wednesday, July 30 at 10 am, United States Courthouse Central District of California, 312 N. Spring Street, Los Angeles, CA 90012, Department 6. Parties interested in supporting Person in court are welcome to sit in. Please wear blue, like a blue t shirt, and write in bold: “Bobsled = CTE” and/or “HBOT Saves Brains.”

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Attachments available upon request:
• Photo of William Person
• Media One Sheet
• Links to prior NYT, Courthouse, and other articles
• Detailed quotes from Person’s court statements
• Information on CTE
• Information on HBOT

Jennifer L Horspool
Engagement PR & Marketing
+1 949-933-4300
Jennifer@engagementpr.com
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9 Year Team USA Bobsledder William Person shares his mission to offer HBOT to athletes with brain damage