MEMPHIS, TN (abc24.com) - A high school basketball player from Little Rock is back from the brink of death.
Chris Winston, then 15 years old, died on the basketball court two years ago only to be brought back to life by quick thinking coaches. They used a defibrillator the school had received just 10 days earlier.
Chris collapsed during the first quarter of a basketball game while he was playing for Parkview High.
Chris may not be able to remember that fateful day but his mother Tammy sure can. She says her entire family was at that game on January 19, 2010 when they saw a kid pass out. She said she saw a body face down on the floor, and she realized it was her son.
Mrs. Winston said after that realization, "All I can do is drop down on my knees and start to pray."
Chris was pronounced dead but was eventually brought back to life. The Winstons didn't know that Chris suffers from hypertropic cardiomyopathy, or an enlarged heart.
Dr. Ryan Jones, Pediatric Cardiologist at Le Bonheur Children's Hospital, explained, "It's a disease where the muscle of the heart thickens and it causes people to have arrhythmia."
Chris has a defibrillator implanted into his chest to shock his heart if it ever has an abnormal rhythm again. The Winstons make the trip from Little Rock to Memphis every six months so Chris can get a routine check-up at Le Bonheur.
Doctors have since cleared him to resume playing basketball.
