Top sportsmen tend to be seen as, to be slightly sweeping, a bit shallow. Cliche would have it that they're focused on their sport, and enjoying a luxury lifestyle off the pitch, where their biggest ambition is collecting cars, bling and an entourage. Chicago Bears star Israel Idonije's found a different approach. He's launched his own publishing company in order to publish his debut entry into the world of comic books. The Nigerian-born lineman unveiled his new graphic novel, The Protectors, at New York's Comic Con this weekend, which sees him pairing with former Green Lantern writer Ron Marz. It's taken five years for the 31-year-old player's book to come to fruition, but with a launch at one of the comics industry's biggest events, and the publicity of his sporting profile behind the book, it's already started to make a splash in the industry. He's not the only comics fan on the Bears' roster - teammate Lance Briggs also had a crack at a book for Top Cow last year, co-writing Seraph for the publisher's pilot season. Idonije's going down a different route, setting up his own firm to put out the book and its sequels. "I want to bring the worlds together," he said. "I always felt like it hadn't been done correctly so why can't I take a shot at it? He's right, in the sense that sports and superheroes have never been particularly easy bedfellows. But as a long time fan, and working with an experienced writer in Marz, he's confident he can try and level the playing field a bit. The Protectors, about a group of athletes who discover their skills are to help save the human race, was originally conceived by Idonije during a training camp. The player sees the book as being a part of his work in helping underprivileged kids and families, following on from his foundation helping children and parents. "Yeah, I love comics and sports, but at the end of the day, everything is about how are we going to add value to people's lives with this project?" he told USA Today. "The potential is endless in terms of getting the actual literature into some hands of young kids who can use it as an opportunity to read. That's a big-picture win for me."
