HS Athletic Departments Scramble to Keep Athletes Safe in Extreme Heat

As  extreme temperatures and humidity hit the middle part of the country this week, high school athletics departments are being forced to alter their operations to keep athletes and personnel safe. 

In Madison, Wis., forecasted temperatures of 99 degrees could peg the heat index at around 110. 

Madison Metropolitan School District athletic director Jeremy Schlitz says players are being given extended breaks and water, as well as alternative workouts coaches can use to keep everyone safe. 

“Weight training, some indoor stuff is possible and sometimes it’s okay to take a break and spend some time in the classroom,” Schlitz told NBC 15. “Whether it’s video or other ways to kind of learn other aspects of the sport that I know our coaches take advantage of.”

Middleton's Mansfield Stadium has turf technology meant to help keep athletes cool during workouts. 

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“We’ve got an engineered wood product in here as our fill as opposed to like a rubber or sand product, and it really lowers the ambient cooling by about 20 to 30 degrees, which has been great,” Schlitz said. “It’s nice actually standing on here versus standing on the black top.”

Senior Tucker Sturm, a Memorial soccer player, has felt the impact of heat in the past.

“If you feel yourself getting dizzy or lightheaded, I have before,” Sturm said. “Just take a quick five minute break and kind of regroup. And if you don’t get over that, then kind of take a longer break.”

Coaches will notify athletes about changes to their practice schedules. Some practices might start earlier in the day while temperatures are lower.

Further south, in the the Ozarks, schools are rescheduling or even cancelling practices to work around the heat. 

“We’re following the science,” Joshua Scott with Springfield Public Schools told KY3. “And I think that’s what’s crucial about it. It’s not going out on a whim.”

From Springfield to Bolivar, football fields across the Ozarks are empty, as the region waits for the heat to pass. 

“Whether it’d be a morning practice on a day like today or later evening practice, or potentially even an indoor practice, working around those indoor sports such as volleyball, we’ve got to have contingency plans in place as far as facilities are concerned,” said Bolivar Middle School Athletic Director Zach Julian.

Bolivar is doing tests every 15 minutes to see if field temperatures are safe for practice. 

“We don’t want kids getting hurt, or we don’t have one have kids with heat exhaustion, heat stroke, and have to overcome those things as well,” said Julian. “So student safety is our number one priority.”

But Joshua Scott, with Springfield Public Schools, says it's not just the athletes he worries about. 

“What about our fans who are coming to attend,” said Scott. “What about people that maybe aren’t as used to that, so that’s why you’re gonna see some games pushed back a little later or practices pushed earlier.”

Both Bolivar and Springfield have coaches trained in life-saving first aid as well as trainers with local hospitals that help the athletes, especially in times like these.

“We have different emergency action plans that we follow as well,” said Julian. “With our coaches, our coaches are trained on that. And as long as CPR first aid certified, they go through heat illness training through MSHSAA. Um, that’s one of the requirements for all coaches to go through. So they’re trained on these things on an annual basis.”