CHICAGO -- Pro Football Hall of Famer and former Heisman Trophy winner Paul Hornung sued equipment manufacturer Riddell Inc. on Thursday, saying football helmets that he wore during his professional career in the 1950s and 60s failed to protect him from brain injury.Attorneys for the 80-year-old Hornung filed the civil lawsuit in Cook County Circuit Court in Chicago, naming the Rosemont-based company as the defendant. It seeks unspecified damages.Hornung suffered multiple concussions as a running back for the Green Bay Packers and has been diagnosed with dementia, the lawsuit says. It said that the neurodegenerative disease has been linked to repetitive head trauma.Concussion lawsuits from athletes have become more common in recent years amid growing awareness about the long-term consequences of repeated blows to the head and Riddell is also fighting litigation elsewhere. But suits from athletes whose playing days were as far back as the 1950s are rare.Riddell began producing helmets out of plastic in 1939, touting them as safer alternatives to ones -- more common at the time -- fashioned from leather, according to the eight-page filing. Hornung, it says, wore a leather helmet when he played for Notre Dame in college but switched to the Riddell-made plastic helmets in the NFL.Erin Griffin, a spokeswoman for Riddell, declined comment in an email, saying, Its our policy not to comment on pending litigation.Hornung won the Heisman in 1956 while at Notre Dame, where he played quarterback. The Packers selected him as the No. 1 overall draft pick a year later. He was the NFL MVP in 1962 and he played on four championship teams (1961, `62, `65 and `66).One of Hornungs lawyers said Riddell knew enough about the perils of concussions more than five decades ago to warn players.Studies dating back to the 19th century linked head trauma to permanent brain damage, but Riddell failed to communicate the danger to Mr. Hornung, the attorney, William T. Gibbs, said in a written statement.Hornungs wife, Angela Hornung, is also named as a plaintiff in the suit, which says she suffered and will continue to suffer the loss of her husbands affection and companionship as a result of his injuries.Riddell has successfully fought some litigation. A Los Angeles jury in 2014 found that Riddell wasnt liable for the severe brain injury of a high school football player who suffered a helmet-to-helmet hit during a game.Riddell, which provides helmets to every level of football -- from the pros to Pop Warner -- has said publicly previously that it has devoted enormous resources to developing equipment that can reduce the risk of a devastating head injury.---Follow Michael Tarm on Twitter at http://twitter.com/mtarmMichael Irvin Jersey . -- Jakob Silfverberg is making himself right at home with the Anaheim Ducks, scoring four goals in his first four games. Emmitt Smith Womens Jersey . After taking two big hits this week -- losing at home and dropping back-to-back games for the first time all season -- Indiana struck back by playing its most complete game of the year. http://www.shoptheofficialcowboys.com/Elite-Deion-Sanders-Cowboys-Jersey/ .C. -- Calgarys Kevin Koe did it the hard way again. Darren Woodson Cowboys Jersey . "Four now," Carl Gunnarsson told the Leaf Report proudly following a 5-2 victory over New York on Tuesday night, the clubs fifth straight at home. Michael Gallup Cowboys Jersey .J. -- Pitcher Carl Pavano is retiring after 14 major league seasons. RIO DE JANEIRO -- Middle Eastern politics spilled onto the judo mat Friday at the Rio de Janeiro Olympics when an Egyptian competitor refused to shake hands with the Israeli who beat him.Islam El Shehaby, an ultraconservative Salafi Muslim, had come under pressure before the Games from Islamist-leaning voices in Egypt to withdraw from the first-round heavyweight bout against Or Sasson.With about a minute and a half left in the bout, Sasson earned an automatic victory with two throws of El Shehaby.The Egyptian lay flat on his back for a moment before rising and standing opposite Sasson in front of the referee. When Sasson extended his hand, El Shehaby backed away, shaking his head.The referee called El Shehaby, 34, back to the mat and demanded him to bow; he gave a quick nod and was loudly booed as he exited.Competitors in the Japanese martial art typically bow or shake hands at the beginning and end of a match as a sign of respect.El Shehaby refused to comment.Sasson, 25, advanced to the semifinals, in which he lost to eventual champion Teddy Riner of France. In the repechage competition, however, Sasson won a bronze medal.Later, Sasson said his coaches had warned him that El Shehaby might refuse to shake his hand even though the two have never fought before.I knew he would do it, so it wasnt a surprise for me, he said. But I cannot say anything. This was his decision.Having been taught that one of the first principles of judo was to respect ones opponent, Sasson said it was a little bit weird that El Shehaby declined to shake his hand, although the gesture didnt affect him.For me, it doesnt matter, because Im a professional fighter, Sasson said.Sasson described Friday as a difficult day after four years of preparation but said he was satisfied with the outcome.Now Im thinking only about my medal, he added.The International Olympic Committee set up a disciplinary commission to look into the incident.Things happen in the heat of the moment that are not acceptable, IOC spokesman Mark Adams said. We believe the Olympic movement should be about building bridges, not erecting walls. Theres absolutely no excuse for it.He acknowledged that sometimes athletes cant bring themselves to shake hands with their competitors.Its a shame if that happens, Adams said.The International Judo Federation called it a sign of progress that the bout even took place between the two athletes.This is already a big improvement that Arabic countries accept to (fight) Israel, spokesmaan Nicolas Messner said in an email.dddddddddddd The competitors were under no obligation to shake hands, but a bow is mandatory, he added.Even though El Shehaby ultimately bowed, his attitude will be reviewed after the Games to see if any further action should be taken, Messner said, adding that the ethics commission of judos governing body would review the incident after the Olympics.Ofir Gendelman, Arabic language spokesman for the Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, called the incident shocking. In a Twitter post, he said it goes against the spirit of Rio 2016.Egypts Olympic Committee distanced itself from what El Shehaby did, saying he was alerted before the match to abide by all the rules and to have sporting spirit during his match with the Israeli player.What the player did after the match, and not shaking hands with his rival, is a personal action, the committee said in a statement.Similar incidents have happened before between Israeli and Arab judo athletes. At the quarterfinals of the 2011 judo Grand Slam in Moscow, Egyptian Ramadan Darwish refused to shake hands with Israeli Arik Zeevi. The next year, Darwish again declined to shake hands with Zeevi after beating the Israeli in their quarterfinal match at a tournament in Dusseldorf.On Thursday, Moutaz Matar, a TV host of the Islamist-leaning network Al-Sharq, had urged El Shehaby to withdraw.My son, watch out. Dont be fooled, or fool yourself, thinking you will play with the Israeli athlete to defeat him and make Egypt happy, he said. Egypt will cry; Egypt will be sad and you will be seen as a traitor and a normalizer in the eyes of your people.Egyptians clearly were divided before the match over whether El Shehaby should compete or withdraw, and there was a mixed reaction on social media afterward. Many blamed him for embarrassing the country, although some felt sympathy for El Shehaby, saying he was put under a lot of pressure.In a Facebook post, journalist Galal Nassar wrote, As long as you agreed to play an Israeli champion in the Olympics, you should have exchanged the greeting.He wrote that El Shehabys move backfired, and the Israeli athlete ended up with more sympathy. We have lost in terms of sports and politics, Nassar said.Egypt was the first country in the Arab world to sign a peace treaty and normalize relations with Israel after decades of war. ' ' '