8 years after Tim Hague's death, Alberta failing on combat sport reform, experts say
CBC
Eight years after a deadly boxing match in Edmonton triggered calls for the province to regulate combat sports, Alberta government officials say they need more time to consider the changes.
An inquiry into the 2017 death of fighter Tim Hague called for sweeping changes to how combat sports are governed in Alberta, including a key recommendation that a single provincial commission be established to oversee every match.
Currently, municipalities are left to regulate combat sports.
Despite the need for reform highlighted by Hague's death — and more recently the 2024 death of Trokon Dousuah during an amateur MMA fight near Edmonton — the province has yet to take definitive action.
Some of the changes proposed in the Hague inquiry recommendations have been rejected outright. Others, including the call for a provincial commission, remain under consideration.
Critics argue that Alberta's inaction is irresponsible and that Alberta's current system fails to protect fighters from the dangers they face in the ring or cage.
Erik Magraken, a combat sports regulatory lawyer in B.C., said Hague's legacy should be the impetus for change, but the province continues to choose "the path of neglect," he said.
Dousuah's death demonstrates that additional delays are dangerous, he said.
"Alberta seems to be dragging their heels," he said.
"Tim Hague died eight years ago. Alberta has had a long time to respond."
Dr. Randolph Knipping, a certified ringside physician and former Ontario coroner, said Hague's death underscores the urgent need for reform.
Alberta is the only province without provincial oversight for combat sports and fighter safety should not depend on geography, Knipping said.
"If you rely on the municipalities, it's going to be a patchwork quilt."
Hague, 34, suffered a brain hemorrhage on June 16, 2017, after suffering a knockout during a boxing match licensed by the Edmonton Combative Sports Commission.
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