CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Nearly 2,000 student-athletes had special screenings in west Charlotte on Saturday to make sure their hearts are healthy before they compete.
The annual "Heart of a Champion” program, put on by Atrium Health, takes a deeper look into student-athletes' health that could potentially save their lives.
The program is more than typical health screenings; the student-athletes get a special heart screening to make sure they're OK to play safely.
"Our ultimate goal is to prevent sudden cardiac death or collapse on a court,” said David Price, medical director of Heart of a Champion Day. “We can't catch everything with these heart screenings, but hopefully, with the addition of some of these things, we catch more of those people that may otherwise go undetected."
The screenings come a week after Charlotte basketball player James Hampton collapsed in the middle of a tournament game in Virginia and died at a hospital.
“It could happen to anybody and I wouldn't want my family to suffer, to go through that at a young age,” said Cydney Harris, a student-athlete at Olympic High School.
In more than 10 years, the program has screened more than 20,000 students and uncovered more than 200 students with potential heart abnormalities.
“God forbid, that could be anybody, so we just need to really protect our bodies and make sure we're having water, sleep and every little thing like that,” said Elijah Metcalf, a football player at Mallard Creek High School.
Now that the program has expanded to Union, York and Lincoln counties, more students are getting the potentially-lifesaving screenings.
"I feel like it's important because anything could happen to anybody,” said Olympic High School student-athlete Ashley Mayfield. “I think your heart needs to be healthy for you to do sports, for you to play your best."
Pediatric cardiologist told Channel 9 that student-athletes need to be aware of symptoms, including signs of a heart defect., such as chest pain and dizziness during exercise.
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