Nashville SC Supporter Refused To Let Medics Cut Off Her Prized Soccer Jersey When She Had A Heart Attack At The Game

That’s a real fan right there.

I can’t imagine having the wherewithal to make any sort of big decision while in the midst of a heart attack. Seems like the main thing that would be at the forefront would be, you know, not dying. But one Nashville SC fan proved that even while you are in cardiac arrest, you can still make small requests.

Like making sure your favorite jersey doesn’t get torn up by the emergency medical team trying to save your life.

Back in May, Leigh Clark was at a Nashville SC game with her husband, Randy, celebrating their anniversary. It was the couple’s third time seeing their favorite MLS team play in Music City, and Leigh was happy to be there to support her favorite player, as she told News Channel 5:

“My favorite player is Shaffelburg. I love his hustle — so my husband got me this shirt for my birthday, and it’s got Shaffelburg on the back.”

It seemed like it was the perfect anniversary celebration. Leigh had her favorite player’s shersey (shirt jersey) on, and they were taking in a match against the New York Red Bulls. But soon after they arrived at Geodis Park, the home of Nashville SC, Leigh noticed that something wasn’t right.

The Nashville woman wasn’t feeling like herself, and even told her husband that they needed to go. As they were attempting to leave, Leigh began feeling very dizzy in the stadium’s concourse level. Neil Worf, a member of the Vanderbilt LifeFlight Event Medicine team, took notice, and it quickly became apparent that Leigh Clark was suffering from a heart attack.

Geodis Park’s medical team got in an ambulance and rushed her to the Vanderbilt University Medical Center. That’s where Dr. Leah Raj and her team were preparing to treat Clark in their cardiac catheterization laboratory, also known as a “cath lab.” The doctor was planning on re-opening a blocked artery with a stent, and when Leigh arrived, Dr. Raj and her team started the process of cutting off Clark’s Scaffelburg jersey.

That didn’t go over well with the Nashville SC fan who was actively having a heart attack:

“When they were prepping me to get a cardiac catheterization, one of the people was like, ‘Are we cutting?’ And I was like, ‘Oh please no.’ So, instead of cutting the shirt off, they gently got it off me and saved it for me.”

Fortunately, both Clark’s prized jersey and her life were saved on that fateful day.

She’s since made a full recovery, and was even able to attend another Nashville SC game… where she was able to thank Vanderbilt LifeFlight personnel in person, and also got to meet her favorite player: Jacob Scaffelburg. Here’s what he had to say about meeting Leigh and hearing her story:

“The whole ‘she didn’t want to rip my shirt’ was crazy. I’ve never heard something like that before. I made sure to tell her that if that ever happens again, we’ll get her a new shirt. It’s unbelievable — very cool.”

All in all, it’s a happy ending to a very scary story. Leigh Clark feels grateful that medical personnel were there to help as soon as she started feeling off, and even thinks that her heart attack could have gone a lot differently if she wasn’t at Geodis Park when it started:

“I feel very lucky that I was at the soccer game when this happened ’cause if I had been at home, I would have laid down and who knows what would have happened. I just feel fortunate and blessed that I was here when it happened.”