Widow's lawsuit against NFL settled – heatstroke death case leads to heat-illness prevention program

I was glad to hear that the lawsuit filed by the widow of Viking lineman Korey Stringer was finally settled. Mrs. Stringer sued the NFL after her husband died of heatstroke during training camp in 2001. (See Sports Illustrated 7/29/02.)

The athlete’s widow alleged the league had not done enough to protect players from heat related illnesses. Mr. Stringer was a 335 lineman for the Minnesota team. While smaller, leaner athletes like TriathlonTrialLawyer Doug Landau are able to tolerate heat better because of their greater surface area to bodymass ratio, extremely large sports professionals can often overheat when moving their bulk under conditions of high temperatures, humidity and water, sweat and electrolyte loss.

Heat dissipation is a well known problem for larger football player, even highly conditioned professional athletes. Under the settlement, the football league will support Mrs. Stringer as she creates a heat-illness prevention program. No other terms were released according to Sports Illustrated.

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