9 DR EANNA FALVEY
World Rugby chief medical officer New entry
The Corkman was appointed chief medical officer earlier in the year, succeeding Dr Martin Raftery. Never in the history of the game has this role been so important, not just with the challenges of player welfare and ongoing law changes to help make the game safer, but also now with the horrors of Covid-19 and all the myriad conundrums it presents.
Dr Falvey is at the forefront of that. He has a long history in elite sport. He’s worked extensively in hurling, football, boxing, Aussie Rules and rugby. He’s a graduate of University College Cork and furthered his learning at the University of Melbourne. He was Munster’s team doctor for four years and was there when they won their first European Cup in 2006, was Ireland’s team doctor for six years until 2015 and was involved on the 2013 Lions tour to Australia as assistant to James Robson and again in New Zealand in 2017 when he had the head role.
Before taking the chief medical officer position, he had worked on various World Rugby medical and concussion groups. A former Irish amateur boxing champion, Falvey is to be respected on all fronts.