14-year-old Wisconsin girl impaled by basketball court

February 16, 2016 / Athletic AdministrationBasketball
It’s critical that schools don’t overlook the condition of their courts and fields, and this story out of Wisconsin is just one reason why.

Screenshot via Channel3000.com
Screenshot via Channel3000.com

A 14-year-old girl was impaled by a piece of wood from the basketball court after falling to the floor during a game. The incident took place during a weekend tournament, where 34 middle school teams were playing at the Middleton field house.

From WISC-TV:

“I just think sometimes strange things happen, and there’s no explanation for the phenomena,” said Perry Hibner, the basketball tournament’s organizer.

Surveillance video obtained by News 3 from the Middleton-Cross Plains School District shows the 14-year-old Wisconsin Heights player running under the basket, falling and sliding on the floor. She comes to a halt and even bounces back before telling the referee that she couldn’t get up.

“And the official said, ‘What do you mean? Are you hurt?’” Hibner said. “And she said, ‘There’s a piece of wood stuck to me.’”

WISC-TV obtained surveillance footage from the game, which can be seen here. Emergency crews responded minutes later and removed the girl from the court. They later found that the wood did not hit any internal organs, and the girl is expected to quickly recover.

Hibner told WISC-TV that the court is just 15 years old and he does not expect any legal action against the school district.

Click here to read the complete story.


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