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Henderson has won twice this year, she’s currently the eighth-ranked player in the world and, normally, would be a shoo-in for the Canadian woman athlete of the year, an award she’s won three of the last four years. But normally, a Canadian tennis player doesn’t win the Canadian Open, which sets up an interesting race between Henderson and Bianca Andreescu.

Photo by Brian Spurlock / USA TODAY Sports

• And finally, you simply had to watch Andrew Luck’s raw, emotional retirement press conference to understand the toll this decision has taken on the young man. Luck was about to enter the fourth year of deal worth US$122 million. The Indianapolis Colts had a realistic title shot. But in six NFL seasons, the 29-year-old had suffered torn rib cartilage, a partly torn abdomen, a lacerated kidney, at least one concussion, a torn labrum in his throwing shoulder and a nagging ankle injury which wasn’t getting better.

Luck had already been named the comeback player of the year for 2018 but he’s had enough, and no right-thinking person could blame him. Unfortunately, that didn’t apply to some who saw the money, saw the fame, saw that he was ruining the Colts’ championship aspirations or their fantasy team and were critical of Luck.

It’s sad. Somewhere along the line we stopped seeing the star athlete as a person and started seeing him or her as the vehicle for our hopes and frustrations. The money and notoriety changes a lot of things for those athletes. But it doesn’t protect them from the crushing physical demands of their chosen field.

During the presser, Luck said: “I haven’t been able to live the life I want to live,” as he choked back tears, and that’s all you needed to know about that moment. He has a right to live that life without pain and without judgment.

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