PHILADELPHIA – A Boston College rower competing in the Dad Vail Regatta (search) passed out at the finish line Saturday afternoon just as his crew won the men's lightweight eight, and school officials later said he had died.
Scott Laio (search), accompanied by his parents, was taken to Hahnemann University Hospital, where Boston College sports information director Chris Cameron said he died. A hospital spokeswoman said she could not immediately confirm his condition.
"We are extremely saddened by the untimely death of Scott Laio. We extend our deepest sympathy to Scott's family and friends. They are in our thoughts and prayers," Athletic Director Gene DeFilippo said in a statement Saturday evening.
Laio, a junior from Pittsford (search), N.Y., according to the college's Web site, was rowing in seventh position, second from the back. He collapsed at about 4 p.m. as the boat was under a large stone bridge just past the packed grandstand.
Teammate Ned Borgman began performing CPR on Laio in the boat until emergency medical technicians took over and treated him with a defibrillator.
There was no immediate word on the cause of death. The National Weather Service listed a high of 80 degrees in Philadelphia on Saturday afternoon.
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