Stomach flu floors Brandon University basketball team
Last Updated: Monday, November 23, 2009 | 10:12 AM CT
CBC News
A nasty stomach flu struck almost every player and the coaches of the Brandon Bobcats women's basketball team on the weekend.
The university team was in Winnipeg for a game on Saturday when the bug started knocking down players and coaches one by one, said coach Jaime Hickson. By Sunday, there weren't many players feeling well enough to play.
"Yesterday, by about 4 p.m., we had 14 of our 18 team members, that's including assistant coaches, all go down and when I say go down, I mean we are all dealing with the vomiting," Hickson said.
'We had 14 of our 18 team members, that's including assistant coaches, all go down and when I say go down, I mean we are all dealing with the vomiting.'—Brandon Bobcats coach Jaime Hickson
One player was so ill she was sent to the hospital for treatment. She was told it was some type of gastro-intestinal flu.
Hickson, who was also affected, said the force of the illness literally knocked her off her feet.
"At the end of the game [on Sunday] my assistant coaches had to carry me downstairs and eventually I was wheelchaired out," she said. "I mean, that's the extent — when I say it was violent that's how much it drained you."
Only seven players on the team were strong enough to play against the University of Winnipeg Wesmen on Sunday.
Hickson said it was surprising how fast the illness spread among the team because they have been taking strict precautions in the wake of the H1N1 pandemic.
All the players appear to be on the mend and the team hopes to have a light practice on Tuesday, she said.
