Let Them Play MN Survey: 14 Kids Collapsed Wearing Masks During Winter Sports Practice

January 14, 2021

Most of these sports are requiring athletes to wear masks during game play and practices. Not all students and parents are too thrilled about this requirement. In a survey put out Jan. 4 – 11 by Let Them Play MN, over 2,500 Minnesotans reported their child or they themselves experienced dizziness and shortness of breath while playing with a mask. The survey also found 14 kids collapsed and 11 needed emergency care. …

In the survey results, students, coaches and parents could leave anonymous comments. One student shared, “Very difficult to breath and I personally feel claustrophobic and have some panic breathing/shortness of breath.”

A Minnesota coach posted in the survey, “As a coach I see daily how much these kids are struggling … wearing a mask while doing a full-out run through or during competition [a time period of about 5 minutes] I feel it is extremely dangerous and the risks of wearing the masks outweigh the benefits.”

Maple Grove basketball player Kylie Baranick has been training with her mask on to be ready for their first game of the season on Thursday against Totino-Grace High School.

“It’s been a big factor, but these past two weeks we’ve been practices, we’ve been conditioning with them on and it’s getting easier each day,” Baranick said.

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