Famous cardiac arrest events in sports history

Buffalo Bill safety Damar Hamlin suffered cardiac arrest in the first quarter during Monday night’s game against the Cincinnati Bengals, leading to the game being suspended after Hamlin collapsed on the field and was taken to the hospital in critical condition.

The scary incident was sadly reminiscent of other high-profile times athletes faced sudden medical emergencies during competition.

Christian Eriksen

During the first half of Denmark’s opening match against Finland on June 12, 2021 at the Euro tournament in Copenhagen, Danish midfielder Christian Eriksen collapsed on the field. Eriksen received CPR and was defibrillated before he was taken off on a stretcher and the match was suspended. However, about an hour later, officials announced Eriksen was in stable condition and awake.

The game resumed later that night with Finland winning. However, the Danish team made a run to the tournament’s semifinals. Eriksen, after successful surgery was discharged from the hospital after several days and resumed his career, returning to the Danish national team last spring and signing with Manchester United in the summer of 2022.

Abdelhak Nouri

Nouri, a Dutch soccer player for Ajax, collapsed on the field after a cardiac arrhythmia attack during a July 8, 2017 match against Werder Bremen. He was flown to a hospital by helicopter and days later the team announced he had suffered brain damage. He was hospitalized for several years. A lawsuit revealed his brain damage was caused by the inadequate medical treatment he received before being taken to the hospital.

Fabrice Muamba

Another soccer player, Muamba was playing for Bolton Wanderers against Tottenham on March 17, 2012 when he collapsed on the field from cardiac arrest. He was examined by a cardiologist who was attending the game and taken to a London hospital, along with Bolton manager Owen Coyle and club captain Kevin Davies.

It was later confirmed that Muamba received multiple defibrillator shocks on the field and in the ambulance. His heart also stopped beating for 78 minutes. He remained hospitalized for nearly a month and retired from professional soccer.

Hank Gathers

Gathers, a 23-year-old basketball star for Loyola Marymount, was diagnosed with an abnormal heartbeat during his senior year after collapsing during a game against UC Santa Barbera in the 1989-90 season. He went on medication and returned to play but collapsed a second time on March 4, 1990 during a game against Portland.

Gathers was taken to a hospital and died hours later. His family later sued Loyola Marymount and the cardiologist who originally treated Gathers after an autopsy revealed an undiagnosed heart-muscle disorder.

Reggie Lewis

Lewis, a Boston Celtics forward, collapsed during a April 29, 1993 playoff game against the Charlotte Hornets. He left the game and checked into a hospital to undergo tests and was diagnosed with focal cardiomyopathy, a heart-muscle disease that causes heart failure. A second opinion diagnosed Lewis with a less serious condition and he resumed training with an aim to return the following season.

However, Lewis died suddenly while practicing at Brandeis University on July 27, 1993. An autopsy later found Lewis had a heart defect and a cold virus was found in his heart tissue. The team later retired his #35 jersey and the league was forced to write new salary cap rules in the event an active player died.

Chuck Hughes

Detroit Lions wide receiver Chuck Hughes collapsed on the field and started convulsing during a October 24, 1971 game against the Chicago Bears. The 28-year-old was rushed to the hospital but died that afternoon. An autopsy revealed one of Hughes’ coronary arteries was blocked. His wife later sued Henry Ford Hospital for malpractice after not treating Hughes previously when he was hospitalized with chest pains.

John McSherry

The MLB umpire collapsed seven pitches into a Cincinnati Reds-Montreal Expos game on Opening Day on April 1, 1996. After calling time out, he stumbled away from home plate and fell. Like Hamlin, he was rushed to University Hospital in Cincinnati but he was declared dead when he arrived. The cause of death was a heart attack and he had previously been diagnosed with a cardiac arrhythmia.

Keyontae Johnson

Johnson, a Florida Gator, collapsed on the basketball court during a game against Florida State on December 12, 2020. He was hospitalized and spent three days in a medically induced coma. He did not return to the team and transferred to Kansas State. It’s unknown what caused Johnson to collapse. However, he had tested positive for COVID-19 before the season and that can cause myocarditis, an infection of the heart muscle that can cause sudden cardiac arrest.

Jay Bouwmeester

The St. Louis Blues defenseman went into cardiac arrest on the bench during a game against the Anaheim Ducks on February 11, 2020. Like Eriksen, he was fitted with an implantable cardioverter defibrillator to return his heart to a normal rhythm, but he was forced to retire from hockey.

Jiri Fischer

Fischer, a defenseman for the Detroit Red Wings, had a seizure and collapsed on the bench during a November 21, 2005 game against the Nashville Predators. He lost consciousness and CPR was administered to resuscitate him when his heart stopped beating. The incident was the first time the NHL postponed a game because of an injury. Fischer was forced to retire.

Sergei Zholtok

Zholtok collapsed in the locker room after leaving a game in Belarus during the NHL lockout on November 3, 2004. He had a history of cardiac arrhythmia and the cause of death was determined to be heart failure.

Miklos Feher

Feher, a Hungarian soccer player for Portuguese club Benifica, collapsed from cardiac arrest during a January 25, 2004 match. He was given CPR and taken to a hospital and died later that day. The cause of death was hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, a condition that thickens heart muscles and pumps blood less effectively.

Thomas Herrion

Herrion, a 23-year-old offensive lineman with the San Francisco 49ers, collapsed in the locker room on August 20, 2005 shortly after a preseason game against the Denver Broncos. An autopsy revealed that his right coronary artery was mostly blocked.