Doctor: The 'Worst Week' in 35 Years for Athlete Deaths

Douglas Casa, doctor and author of the book Preventing Sudden Death in Sports and Physical Activity, is calling the past five days "the worst week in the last 35 years in terms of athlete deaths." At least three heat-related deaths on high school football practice fields have been reported, including two players in Georgia and a coach in Texas. Additionally, four high school players in Arkansas were hospitalized for dehydration Wednesday as temperatures soared to a record 114 degrees. And the death of 28-year-old runner Jeremiah Morris in an endurance race called the Warrior Dash on Sunday is being blamed on heatstroke.

HeatCasa, who also is chief operating officer of the Korey Stringer Institute at the University of Connecticut, told CNN.com that parents need to demand more specific and enforced rules for high school coaches training in extreme heat and other severe weather. Currently, there is no set of national rules; most state athletic associations issue guidelines to member schools, although some states (including Arkansas) have outlawed consecutive two-a-day practices, and three days of conditioning with only football helmets and shorts are mandatory before full pads can be worn. Still, if stricter oversight and enforcement doesn't happen soon, Casa predicts that the tragedies will continue. "It's not like the NCAA, where they mandate rules and the colleges have to follow them," he said. "The [state] high school association can make some recommendations, but they don't have any power or teeth to have those policies actually implemented."

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