Basketball coach collapsed 3 minutes into the game. The rival coach’s next move saved his life.

(L) A basketball coach yells at his players; (R) A man clutches his chest.

Three minutes into a middle school basketball game in Massachusetts, Ronnie Poirier collapsed face-down near the gym. His lips had turned blue. He wasn’t breathing.

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Ian Haffer, the coach from the opposing Belmont team, saw it happen. He didn’t hesitate. He yelled for someone to get an AED (automated external defibrillator), ran over to Poirier, and started cutting off his shirt.

Parents in the stands watched in shock as Haffer, who had medical training, got the AED hooked up and delivered the shock. A parent named Reed Bundy called 911. Paramedics arrived minutes later and rushed Poirier to the hospital, where he was treated for cardiac arrest in the ICU.

Haffer had been coaching in Belmont for years, but he’d never faced anything like this. “I was unsure about what was going to happen,” he told WAGMTV. “However, I knew I had to act as fast as I could.”

On the court, they were rivals. Off the court, Poirier now credits Haffer with giving him a second chance at life. When asked about it later, he got emotional and choked up.

“Yep, he saved my life,” Poirier said.

A high school basketball coach watches his players. Photo credit: Canva

Poirier was still in the hospital awaiting further testing when he gave that interview, still processing what had happened. The whole thing, from collapse to shock to ambulance, probably took less than ten minutes. But those ten minutes were the difference between walking out of that gym and not walking out at all.

Haffer didn’t think about the game. He didn’t think about the scoreboard or the fact that Poirier was technically his opponent that day. He just saw someone who needed help and moved.

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