Florida Gators star Keyontae Johnson in critical condition after collapsing in the middle of a game

Florida University basketball star Keyontae Johnson is in critical but stable condition in hospital after collapsing in the middle of their game against Florida State.

Gators coach Mike White declined to do any postgame media interviews. He wanted to get to the hospital to be near Johnson’s side as quickly as possible.

No one could blame him.

Johnson, the Southeastern Conference’s preseason player of the year, collapsed coming out of a timeout against rival Florida State and needed emergency medical attention Saturday.

Johnson was taken off the floor on a stretcher and rushed to Tallahassee Memorial for evaluation.

The team said he was in critical but stable condition and later said he would remain in the hospital overnight.

Florida University basketball star Keyontae Johnson is in critical but stable condition in hospital after collapsing in the middle of their game against Florida State

Johnson, the Southeastern Conference’s preseason player of the year, collapsed coming out of a timeout against rival Florida State and needed emergency medical attention Saturday. He was then stretchered off the floor

Johnson scored five points in four minutes before he fell to the flood during Saturday’s game

Johnson’s parents were flying in from Virginia to be with their son.

‘I know you’re fighting bro,’ teammate Tre Mann tweeted after the game ended. ‘God got you.’

Johnson had just dunked in transition before he crumpled to the floor as the team broke its huddle.

Several Gators were in tears and a couple buried their faces in towels as White gathered them in prayer.

Officials gave the teams time to regroup, and the game continued a few minutes later. Florida State coach Leonard Hamilton said administrators twice gave the Gators the option of stopping or continuing the game – at that time and again at halftime – and said they ultimately decided to play. White let his players make the call.

Florida wasn’t the same afterward, getting outscored 80-60 following Johnson’s sudden and disconcerting exit. The 20th-ranked Seminoles won 83-71, extending their winning streak in the series to seven and their winning streak at home to 26.

Medical personnel rush to attend to Johnson after he suddenly collapsed, months after he tested positive for COVID

Johnson had just dunked in transition before he crumpled to the floor as the team broke its huddle

Several Gators were in tears and a couple buried their faces in towels as cpaches gathered them in prayer

Gators coach Mike White declined to do any postgame media interviews. He wanted to get to the hospital to be near Johnson’s side as quickly as possible

‘Please keep praying for @Keyontae and his family,’ White posted on Twitter. ‘We all love him’

‘I know you’re fighting bro,’ teammate Tre Mann tweeted after the game ended. ‘God got you’

‘Please keep praying for @Keyontae and his family,’ White posted on Twitter. ‘We all love him.’

Auburn coach Bruce Pearl gathered his team together after practice, told them about Johnson’s situation and asked them join an assistant in prayer. The team posted a video of it on social media.

Johnson, a 6-foot-5 junior from Norfolk, Virginia, averaged a team-high 14 points last season to go along with 7.1 rebounds. He also led the Gators with 38 steals.

He scored five points in four minutes Saturday.

Johnson, a 6-foot-5 junior from Norfolk, Virginia, averaged a team-high 14 points last season to go along with 7.1 rebounds. He also led the Gators with 38 steals

‘Those types of things can affect you in some adverse ways,’ Hamilton said. ‘We´re just all hopeful and praying that he´s OK. If it affected our players in an emotional way, I can imagine what the situation was with his teammates.’

Like many of his Florida teammates, Johnson tested positive for COVID-19 during the summer.

Although the cause of Johnson’s ailment was not immediately known, the coronavirus can lead to myocarditis, a viral infection of the heart muscle. At its most severe, myocarditis can lead to sudden cardiac arrest and has been a documented cause of death for young, otherwise healthy athletes.

The Southeastern Conference mandates strict protocols, including rigorous heart testing, before players can be cleared to return to play following positive COVID-19 tests.

LONG COVID: WHAT IS IT AND COULD IT BE FOUR DIFFERENT SYNDROMES?

Covid-19 is described as a short-term illness caused by infection with the novel SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus. Public health officials tend to say people will recover within two weeks or so.

However it’s become increasingly clear that this is not the case for everyone, and that the two-week period is only the ‘acute illness’ phase.

The North Bristol NHS Trust’s Discover project, which is studying the longer-term effects of coronavirus, found that out of a total of 110 patients given a three-month check up, most (74 per cent) had at least one persistent symptom after twelve weeks. The most common were:

Excessive fatigue: 39%
Breathlessness: 39%
Insomnia: 24%
Muscle pain: 23%
Chest pain: 13%
Cough: 12%
Loss of smell: 12%
Headache, fever, joint pain and diarrhoea: Each less than 10%

Other long term symptoms that have been reported by Covid-19 survivors, both suspected and confirmed, anecdotally, include hearing problems, ‘brain fog’, memory loss, lack of concentration, mental health problems and hair loss.

The impact of Long Covid on people who had mild illness have not been studied in depth yet.

Data from the King’s College London symptom tracking app shows that up to 500,000 people in the UK are currently suffering from the long-term effects of Covid-19.

In October, scientists claimed Long Covid could actually be split into four different syndromes.

Academics at the National Institute for Health Research — headed up by Professor Chris Whitty — were asked to review the limited evidence on long Covid to help both patients and doctors understand the ‘phenomenon’.

Their findings warned that even children can suffer and it can’t be assumed that people who are at lower risk of severe illness and death from Covid-19 are also at low risk of lasting side effects.

Doctors cautioned some mental health problems such as anxiety and depression in ‘long-haulers’, as they are known, could be down to lockdowns, as opposed to the virus itself.

The experts also claimed that the symptoms could be grouped into four different groups:

Post intensive care syndrome (PICS)
Post viral fatigue syndrome (PVFS)
Permanent organ damage (POD)
Long term Covid syndrome (LTCS)