By Ken Reed
Following an abusive conditioning workout, which was apparently punishment for some players missing curfew, five Concordia University, Chicago men’s basketball players had to be hospitalized. The hospitalizations forced the Division III program to postpone at least two of its games.
School athletic director Peter Gnan temporarily suspended coach Steve Kollar following the Dec. 31 team practice that resulted in the the players being taken to the hospital.
“It’s been a long few days,” said Ryan Collicott, father of Concordia player Jacob Collicott, one of the players hospitalized. “He was, I guess, dehydrated. Plus the muscles were breaking down and getting into his bloodstream, I guess.”
That description sounds like the medical condition Rhabdomyolysis. Rhabdomyolysis, aka Rhabdo, is a serious and potentially fatal condition resulting from the catastrophic breakdown of muscle cells.
“Our athletics program has zero tolerance for harassment or retaliatory actions of any kind, and reporting mechanisms are in place for students, coaches and related staff,” said Gnan in a letter to the players’ parents.
College athletes having to be taken to the hospital following abusive Rhabdo-inducing conditioning workouts has happened several times before, including at Iowa and Oregon.
Here’s hoping Gnan’s zero tolerance policy for abusive coaching practices is truly zero tolerance, and not just a slap on the wrist for Kollar.
— Ken Reed, Sports Policy Director, League of Fans
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