University of the Cumberlands reaches $14M settlement in student wrestler’s death
The University of the Cumberlands and the family of a student wrestler who died in 2020 after on-campus workouts have reached a settlement of more than $14 million, the university said Wednesday.
Grant Brace was a 20-year-old junior from Louisville, Tennessee, who died from heat stroke following on-campus workouts. Brace was a member of the men’s wrestling team whose family sued the university for his death, saying it was “tragic and entirely avoidable.”
Part of the settlement also includes an agreement for the university to participate in a heat-illness training program and promotion of the Brace family’s work to raise awareness of heat-related injuries, according to a statement from the university.
“Grant was a talented, well-liked young man entering his junior year with a bright future ahead of him,” Chancellor Jerry Jackson said in a statement Wednesday. “Our University community continues to mourn his untimely loss. We sincerely hope that resolving this matter early in the legal process will offer the Brace family a measure of peace and healing.”
On the day Brace died, the wrestling team had its first training day of the season, led by then-head coach Jordan Countryman and assistant coach Jake Sinkovics. After practice, the team had “punishment practice” on the “punishment hill,” which required the athletes to sprint up and down a steep hill for seven circuits. Brace completed numerous circuits and then sat down out of exhaustion, the Herald-Leader previously reported.
According to the lawsuit filed by the family, Brace was later heard saying “I’m done. I can’t do this anymore.” His medical condition continued to deteriorate consistent with signs of heat stroke.
Brace left to find assistance and water. He ran to an outdoor water fountain that was not working. He also tried to get into a building but could not. Brace collapsed and died, the lawsuit said.
About 45 minutes after Brace left practice, Countryman and Sinkovics began looking for him. Brace was found dead with his hands clinched in the grass and dirt, according to the suit.
“The safety of the University’s students and athletes has been and always will be the top priority of the University,” the university said in a statement. “As it has in the past, the University will continue to ensure that its athletic department protocols, including those addressing heat-illness, remain aligned with NAIA standards. The University welcomes the opportunity to work with the Brace family’s consultant to ensure it is providing the safest environment possible for student-athletes in all sports.”
