A Heartfelt Moment During a Championship Game
During the final moments of a thrilling championship decider at Qudos Bank Arena in Sydney, a long-time fan of the Sydney Kings suffered a heart attack and collapsed on the floor. The incident occurred during a packed event, as the Kings secured their sixth NBL title with an 113-101 overtime victory over Adelaide in the decisive fifth game of the championship series.
First responders, police, and arena staff quickly sprang into action, performing CPR while the game continued into extra time. The post-match presentation was briefly delayed as officials safely transported the man from the arena to a waiting ambulance.
A fan who witnessed the incident shared their thoughts: “It is a relief to know that this gentleman is in a stable condition. Our family sits in the same members section and have been concerned for his health ever since.” Another spectator added, “It was a traumatic event for all of us who witnessed it. I can only imagine how his family would have felt at that moment.”
A special shout out was given to the members who turned their attention to help provide CPR to the man before first responders arrived. “I hope he makes a full recovery. It’s so important for everyone to get your first aid certificate; you never know when you might need it.”
The man was rushed to Westmead Hospital on Sunday night and remains in a serious but stable condition. Onlookers described the collapse as distressing but praised medical staff for their swift response. A friend who travelled with him and his wife said the family wishes to remain private and is grateful for the care provided.
“What a wonderful job by everyone at Qudos,” the family friend said. “Thank you to everyone who helped him from the Qudos staff, people around them, police, ambos, St John’s ambos, anyone who worked on him.”
After the delay, the celebrations were briefly interrupted again by an awkward moment when the NBL Championship trophy broke as Kings players lifted it overhead.
The triumph sealed the Kings’ first championship since their legendary former coach Brian Goorjian returned with a mandate to reignite the glamour club last season. Goorjian had presided over three consecutive championship wins at the Kings in the early 2000s, when the league was in financial turmoil.
Sunday’s victory in front of 18,589 fans was an opportunity for the NBL master coach to reflect on just how much Australian basketball had grown since then. “When I walk around the township, and I’ve won before here, there’s never been this interest,” he said. “We had it going [in the early 2000s], but the league was in disarray. Right now, doing this, and what this series has done for the league is huge.”
“The strength of the NBL, there’s a great base there, and I just think this series has added an enormous amount of respect from the other codes.”
While Adelaide fell 12 points short in overtime in the epic decider, it was not before pushing Sydney to the brink of one of the great turnarounds, after a 44-point Game 1 loss.
“I couldn’t be more proud of the group and the way we competed,” coach Mike Wells said in his post-game press conference. “All year … the amount of times that we were down at least eight points in second halves and came back and won was something like 13. To just keep competing and playing, we probably had that game won for about 39 minutes and 16 seconds or something … that’s why it’s such a gut punch.”
