Additional Coverage:
- A heat stroke ended this pro-athlete’s career and 8 years later she’s still feeling its effects (newsbreak.com)
Amy Steel’s successful netball career came to an abrupt end in 2016 due to a severe heat-related illness she suffered during a match. Even eight years later, Steel continues to experience significant long-term health issues as a result of the incident. Amid ever-increasing global temperatures, she is keen on educating other athletes about the risks and symptoms of heat stroke.
On the day of the incident, the atmosphere in the stadium was oppressively hot, pushing players to cool off with ice as they prepared for the game. Despite expecting a substitution, Steel continued playing after the halftime break. After the match, she collapsed in the stadium’s parking lot and has not fully recovered from the effects of the heat-related illness that ended her netball career.
Over her more than ten-year career as a professional netball player—a sport akin to basketball but played primarily in countries like Australia and England—Steel achieved considerable success. Her training regime was rigorous, consisting of five hours a day of practice, balanced with her job in accounting.
The temperature on the fateful game day soared above 102 degrees Fahrenheit. The game took place in Shepparton, roughly 100 miles north of Melbourne, under conditions officials initially deemed safe. However, Steel argues that these assessments were made before the venue filled with spectators and players, escalating the heat to dangerous levels.
Following the game, as Steel sat in an ice bath that felt strangely warm and struggled with the shower controls—a sign of mental confusion indicative of heat stroke—the seriousness of her condition became evident. Lacy Alexander, a kinesiology professor at Penn State University not involved in Steel’s treatment, explained that heat stroke can critically impair brain and neural tissues due to elevated temperatures.
The lingering impact of heat stroke can be severe, triggering an immune overreaction similar to a “cytokine storm,” which can occur in diseases like COVID-19. This hyperactive immune response can lead to chronic health problems. Steel, for instance, has suffered recurrent issues such as tonsilitis and glandular fever, alongside persistent kidney inflammation.
Today, Steel’s life is vastly different; she frequently requires multiple rests throughout the day to manage fatigue. Once an elite athlete, she now finds even moderate temperatures can impair her cognitive functions—a symptom potentially linked to disrupted heat shock proteins in her body, which normally protect cells from stress.
With climate change driving global temperatures higher, Steel’s experience serves as a crucial warning for athletes about the potentially life-altering effects of heat-related illnesses.