Brad Gushue back curling after concussion-like symptoms from on-ice fall
Gregory Strong | The Canadian Press | Posted: November 11, 2015 9:29 PM | Last Updated: November 12, 2015
Veteran skip thinks frost on shoe gripper may have caused accident
Veteran curler Brad Gushue returned to action Wednesday for the first time since suffering a head injury last month.
The St. John's skip opened against Saskatoon's Steve Laycock in the late-afternoon draw at The National at General Motors Centre in Oshawa, Ont.
Gushue needed seven stitches to close a gash above his right eye after he fell Oct. 31 at The Masters in Truro, N.S.
He lost his balance and landed head first on the ice. Gushue thinks a buildup of frost on his shoe's gripper may have caused him to fall.
Gushue went down in the fourth end, got stitched up at a nearby hospital, and returned in the seventh end of a 5-2 quarter-final loss to Laycock.
He said he experienced concussion-like symptoms after he left the arena and again the next day. Gushue underwent a CT scan when he returned home and rested for almost a week.
He added that he had additional tests done this week before doctors gave him the go-ahead to travel and play at the Grand Slam of Curling event at GMC.
Gushue, 35, won Olympic gold at the 2006 Winter Games in Turin, Italy.