POLK COUNTY, Fla. — The death of a 14-year-old on a Hillsborough County ballfield earlier this month is sparking even more calls for professional oversight.
An athletic trainer in Polk County has now set up an online petition, joining a growing chorus of sports professionals suggesting there is a need for safety improvements and oversight.
“It’s hot. Very hot,” said Jordan Sutherland, who is attending soccer camp in Polk County this summer.
For young athletes like Sutherland, it’s important to pay attention to trainers and coaches who tell him when it’s time to play hard -- and when it’s time to rest.
“What if someone gets overheated or something like that?” said Sutherland. “If you get the athletic trainer, then he or she will do something about it.”
In early June, 14-year-old Hezekiah Walters collapsed during a physical conditioning practice at Middleton High School in Tampa.
Though the cause of his death had not been officially determined, athletic trainers have suggested professional supervision might have made a difference.
“It’s really important to have somebody that really understands about the hydration and how the kids get concussions and stuff,” said soccer coach Victor Parreiras.
Within days of Walters’ death, some in Hillsborough were calling on the district to have athletic trainers -- not just at every game, but at every practice.
This week, that same sentiment spread to Polk County.
Lloyd Knudson, an athletic trainer from Winter Haven, has started an online petition in Walters’ memory suggesting every high school in Polk have its own athletic trainer.
“We need to take some sort of action to ensure this doesn’t happen again,” said Knudson.
Polk school officials have been receptive to the idea, but Knudson says based on early conversations, it could cost hundreds of thousands, maybe even over $1 million to accomplish.
“For the kids? Any amount of money. Anything to protect our youth,” said Meghan Sullivan, whose kids both play soccer.
“I think if they train the coaches well enough, that might suffice,” suggested Karena Ginn, whose sons also play soccer.
Training coaches is a good step, says Knudson. But with as many kids being injured or killed on the field as we’ve lost to classroom violence, he said, it’s time to make a similar safety commitment.
“Unfortunately, the statistics are there of how many lives were taken because of not having emergency medical care on the field right there -- having a certified athletic trainer on the field in one of those precious moments,” said Knudson.
After Walters’ death, Hillsborough schools suspended summer workouts and activities until coaches at all schools had a chance to review safety procedures.
In Polk County, medical personnel attend students’ games, but records show more than 60 percent of sports-related injuries occur during practice, not the games themselves.
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