ABC Sport broadcaster Karen Tighe on suffering significant memory loss after contracting viral encephalitis

Karen Tighe should be behind the mic, expertly steering ABC Radio’s sporting coverage as she usually does each summer.

But this year she’s sidelined, slowly recovering from life-threatening inflammation of the brain that struck her down in early March.

While physically she’s now in good shape, the award-winning broadcaster, whose job relies on swift recall of sporting facts and figures, is unable to remember the names of top sportsmen and women that once rolled off her tongue with ease.

During our interview, she variously refers to “our world number one women’s tennis player”, “the captain of the Australian men’s cricket team” and “our women’s soccer team”.

She can picture people and teams but the names — Ash Barty, Tim Paine, the…