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Champion Insights
Investigating ALS in High-Risk Groups to Find Answers for All
Champion Insights is a focused research initiative to understand why certain populations—such as elite athletes, military personnel, and first responders — are more likely to be diagnosed with ALS. By collecting and analyzing data from these groups, researchers aim to uncover patterns that could reveal how ALS develops and progresses.
If you are a person with ALS who is part of one of these high-risk populations, your participation is a generous contribution that can help researchers uncover vital insights into the disease.
Why Champion Insights Matters
Studies suggest that elite athletes, military personnel, and first responders may be up to twice as likely to develop ALS compared to the general population—but the reasons why remain unclear. Champion Insights seeks to uncover the genetic, environmental, and lifestyle factors that contribute to this elevated risk.
Champion Insights is the first ALS study to gather such a deep and integrated dataset on this high-risk population.
It combines:
  • Multi-omics (genetic and molecular data)
  • Patient-derived motor neurons
  • Continuous wearable and digital monitoring
  • Detailed training, competition, and occupational exposure histories
  • Open data access to benefit the entire ALS research community
By identifying the biological mechanisms driving ALS in these high-risk groups, researchers may uncover new pathways toward treatments that benefit everyone living with ALS.
Champion Insights matter
By identifying the biological mechanisms driving ALS in these high-risk groups, researchers may uncover new pathways toward treatments that benefit everyone living with ALS.
Who Can Participate
Champion Insights is open to people diagnosed with ALS who may share certain lifestyle or occupational risk factors, including:
Athletes
Elite or endurance athletes
(i.e., professional/collegiate athletes)
Military
Military service members
First responders
First responders such as firefighters, EMTs, and others in similar roles
Enrollment criteria may expand in the future.
What to Expect as a Participant
Champion Insights is fully remote, so you can participate from home. Here's what's involved:
Eligibility
Eligibility screening:
Answer questions about your athletic, occupational, and medical history
Blood
At-home blood draw:
Recurring in-home sample collections to gather genetic and molecular ("omics") data
Questionnaire
Online questionnaires:
Share information about your health, lifestyle, and training history
Daily health monitoring
Digital health monitoring:
Use of wearable accelerometers and voice recordings track symptoms over time.
Medical
Medical background:
Provide context to help researchers understand your ALS journey
Updates
Ongoing updates:
Occasionally provide follow-up information to help track changes over time
Participation is designed to be safe, convenient, and flexible.
How Champion Insights Complements the ARC Study
Champion Insights runs in parallel with ALS TDI's ARC Study — the longest-running natural history study in ALS.
Champion Insights
  • Focused on higher-risk groups (athletes, military, first responders)
  • Collects training, competition, and occupational exposure histories
ALS Research Collaborative ALS Research Collaborative
  • Open to anyone with ALS or asymptomatic gene carriers
  • Collects broad genetic, clinical, and molecular data
Together, these studies provide both breadth and depth — essential perspectives for unlocking the complexities of ALS.
If you already participate in the ARC Study and qualify for Champion Insights , your existing ARC data can be carried over to Champion Insights. You can learn more about the ARC Study here.
Quotation Mark
Understanding ALS requires fundamentally rethinking how research is done. By empowering people to conveniently participate from home, Champion Insights can hopefully unravel why elite athletes and high performers are disproportionately impacted.
I'm giving my blood and self to be participant #1, but because I ordinarily prefer #37, I’m challenging 36 more former athletes, military members, and adrenaline-driven humans with ALS to join me.”
Steve Gleason, former NFL athlete,
founder of Answer ALS & Team Gleason
Collaborating Organizations
Champion Insights is led by Answer ALS and Augie’s Quest to Cure ALS, with research operations directed by the ALS Therapy Development Institute (ALS TDI). Together with partners like Neuromine, Gates Ventures, and GATC Health, this collaboration brings unmatched expertise, global resources, and independent oversight.
Champion Insights
Enroll in Champion Insights
By joining Champion Insights, you can help answer critical questions about ALS risk — and fuel the search for new treatments