By EMS1 Staff
CLERMONT, Fla. — An EMT-certified college student cheering on his teammates at a triathlon helped save an unconscious swimmer during the race.
Officials said the water conditions during the 750-meter swim portion of the triathlon were some of the worst they had seen and swimmers were struggling.
“They had a boat out there speeding around picking up swimmers who were struggling,” Coach Parker Spencer said. “Two of the girls were unconscious when they pulled them out of the boat, and one girl didn’t have a pulse.”
Greg Schott, a sophomore at Liberty University studying to be a physical therapist, had dropped out of the race the day before, as he was recovering from bronchitis. He was attending in support of his teammates when the incident occurred.
Schott, who had recently earned his EMT certification, ran over with two nurses who happened to be in the crowd of spectators. The group immediately began CPR, and were able to revive the girl after a few chest compressions.
Schott, who volunteers at a Richmond, Virginia fire department, comes from a family of first responders; his father is a flight paramedic, his mother is a neonatal ICU nurse and his sister is an EMT.