2001年，明尼苏达维京人队球员科瑞·斯特林格在训练营中因中暑昏迷[1]。从他离开训练场到送往医院，耗时约90分钟[1]，到达医院时其核心体温已达到108.8华氏度[1]。经过约15小时的抢救，斯特林格最终不幸身亡[1]，成为唯一死于劳动性热射病的NFL球员[1]。
这场悲剧催生了一系列安全改革。专家道格拉斯·卡萨与斯特林格遗孀共同推动了协议修订，最重要的改革是在每支NFL球队的训练场配备冷水浸泡浴缸[1]。这一措施成本仅需约150美元[1]。卡萨曾作为专家证人参与过85起热射病死亡案件调查，他指出"每一起都本可通过适当治疗和冷却而避免"[1]。值得注意的是，卡萨本人在16岁时也曾遭遇热射病，正是通过冷水浸泡浴缸的救治得以存活[1]。作为改革的进一步体现，科瑞·斯特林格研究所于2010年成立，作为和解协议的一部分[1]。
Korey Stringer, a Minnesota Vikings player, died in 2001 from exertional heat stroke after collapsing during a training camp session [1]. The delay in emergency treatment proved fatal—approximately 90 minutes elapsed before he reached the hospital, where his core body temperature measured 108.8 degrees Fahrenheit [1]. He was pronounced dead after remaining unconscious for roughly 15 hours [1].
His death became a watershed moment for NFL safety protocols. Expert witness Douglas Casa, who has evaluated 85 heat stroke fatalities throughout his career, emphasized that every case he examined "could have been prevented with appropriate treatment and cooling" [1]. Stringer's tragic outcome catalyzed the implementation of multiple safety measures across the league, most notably the installation of cold water immersion tubs at every NFL team's practice field [1]. These potentially life-saving devices cost approximately $150 each [1]. Casa himself survived heat stroke at age 16 through cold water immersion treatment [1], lending personal urgency to his advocacy efforts.
The reforms extended beyond equipment. The Korey Stringer Institute was established in 2010 as part of a settlement agreement [1], institutionalizing efforts to prevent similar tragedies. Stringer remains the only NFL player to have died from exertional heat stroke [1], a distinction underscoring both the rarity and preventability of such incidents when proper protocols are in place.