A B.C. MMA fighter who is dedicated to ‘fighting the stigma’ of medical cannabis in sports will be center stage this fall in Canada’s first contact sports event since competition was suspended due to COVID-19.
Elias Theodorou is the first professional athlete and MMA fighter in the world to receive a therapeutic use exemption – or TUE – for medical cannabis in competition, which was granted in February by the British Columbia Athletic Commission.
This fall, Theodorou will be looking to make professional sports history in his next fight as the first sanctioned cannabis athlete in a jurisdiction that recognizes his medical cannabis rights. Those details, however, have yet to be determined.
Dubbed the ‘Mane Event,’ the pandemic-safe competition which will be live-streamed by media company ImagineBC.
I look forward to competing on home soil soon and being a driving force in the return of MMA in 🇨🇦! In addition, knocking cannabis out of the “prohibited list”. I will Rise: #FightingTheStigma exclusively on @Imaginebcapp #Trailblazer https://t.co/ebWbluz3Aq
— The Mane Event™ (@EliasTheodorou) October 5, 2020
“I collaborated with ImagineBC to bring this unique event to life because we share a vision of a more equitable future for all athletes, creators, and personalities. It’s important to me to provide a safe, accessible and inclusive platform for my audience, and ImagineBC is the best possible partner to support this vision.” says Theodorou.
“Imagine BC’s platform is levelling the playing field for advocates like me. The ability to securely age-gate my content for a 19+ audience allows me to work within the current Canadian marketing regulations in a compliant way, while still being able to provide authentic content to my loyal fans.”
To learn more about the streaming, visit: imaginebc.net/elias-theodorou.