WELLINGTON, New Zealand — Post-mortem analysis has confirmed that former professional New Zealand rugby player Shane Christie, who died of suspected suicide in August 2023 at age 39, was living with high-stage chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), a degenerative brain condition tied to repeated head impacts and concussions. Coroner Ian Telford announced the official diagnosis during a preliminary public hearing into Christie’s death this Thursday.
CTE is a progressive disorder that gradually damages brain tissue, triggering a range of disabling symptoms including dramatic mood swings, impulsive decision-making, and clinical depression. Unlike most neurodegenerative conditions, a definitive CTE diagnosis can only be made after death, through post-mortem examination of brain tissue.
A former representative player for the New Zealand Māori rugby side, Christie built a professional career playing Super Rugby for two top New Zealand franchises, the Crusaders and Highlanders. He was forced to retire from the sport in 2018, after years of accumulated symptoms from repeated concussions sustained during his playing career. Long before his death, Christie suspected he had developed CTE, and became a vocal advocate for greater public and institutional understanding of the condition following the 2020 suspected suicide of his friend and fellow professional rugby player Billy Guyton.
Both Guyton and Christie donated their brains to the University of Auckland’s Neurological Foundation Human Brain Bank, a leading research facility studying neurodegenerative conditions linked to contact sports. The diagnosis of advanced CTE was confirmed by Dr. Clinton Turner, a pathologist attached to the brain bank program. Coroner Telford noted that while the pathological diagnosis is confirmed, the official cause of Christie’s death will be finalized through the full coronial inquiry process.
CTE has long been associated with adverse long-term outcomes and deaths among athletes in multiple high-impact contact sports, including the U.S. National Football League, professional hockey, and soccer. Following the public announcement of Christie’s diagnosis, New Zealand Rugby chief executive Steve Lancaster reaffirmed the governing body’s commitment to addressing CTE risks. The organization officially recognizes the confirmed link between repeated head impacts in rugby and the development of CTE, and takes the public health threat of the condition extremely seriously.
“New Zealand Rugby acknowledges the CTE pathology results for Shane Christie confirmed by The Neurological Foundation Human Brain Bank. We also acknowledge and respect the role of the coroner to determine the nature of any inquiry they may hold examining the cause and circumstances of Shane’s passing,” Lancaster said in a statement to local media. “We share the concerns about the potential long-term effects of repeated head knocks in rugby and support the need for ongoing research into this issue.”
Close friends and family of Christie shared that the former player always intended for his post-mortem diagnosis to be made public. His goal was to raise global awareness of CTE symptoms and risks, to support current athletes living with undiagnosed or unaddressed impacts of repeated head injuries.