A devastated father has recalled how his 18-year-old son died from a hemorrhage near the brain after collapsing at a suburban boxing gym.
Apprentice carpenter George Diamond was taken to hospital after a sparring session at the Sting Gym in Cranbourne, south-east of Melbourne, in February 2019.
The teenager could not be saved and died at The Alfred hospital.
An autopsy found Mr Diamond’s death was caused by “acute subdural haemorrhage, operated on in an environment of martial arts activity”, Melbourne Coroner’s Court said on Tuesday.
“There was also evidence of an older subdural hemorrhage,” said the lawyer who helped Gideon Boas.
George had just returned to boxing after taking time off following his first concussion four months earlier, when he died.
Apprentice carpenter George Diamond (pictured) was taken to hospital after a sparring session at Sting Gym in Cranbourne, south-east of Melbourne, in February 2019.
A coroner is investigating the death of 18-year-old George Diamond after he was injured but returned to boxing at a Melbourne gym. Mr. Diamond is pictured on the left. His father Vic appears in the photo on the right.
George’s father, Vic Diamond, cried on the witness stand as he recalled a heartbreaking conversation with his son on the way home from the hospital when he was first injured.
“I said, ‘Georgie, maybe you should put boxing aside for a while,'” he said.
“He said, ‘Dad, the gym owners said I’m fine, they let me drive home, two GPs said I’m fine, a doctor at the hospital told me I don’t even have a scan. what they say because they are professionals.
“It’s something I regret,” Mr. Diamond said.
The first injury occurred when George was training when his opponent hit him in the groin and repeatedly in the head on October 25, 2018.
Diamond recalled that his son came home from the gym that night and wasn’t himself.
“He told me, ‘I got hurt boxing, the gym checked me out, they gave me a Gatorade and let me drive home 20 minutes later,'” he told the court.
‘My question is, why didn’t they call an ambulance? There are three medical centers within a kilometer of the gym, why didn’t they take him to one of those medical centers?
The next day, George went to work but his boss sent him home because he was vomiting, that’s when his father decided to take him to the doctor.
He told the GP he was vomiting, dizzy, had headaches and back pain, and she sent him away but told her to bring him back if he continued.
His condition did not improve, so they went back to see a different doctor and were again told to give him a few days before bringing him back, the father said.
No MRIs or CT scans were ordered, but the teen was sent for blood tests.
His symptoms continued, prompting father and son to go to Frankston Hospital on November 5, where he was diagnosed with a concussion.
Diamond asked the doctor to order an MRI or CT scan for her son, but the ER doctor said he didn’t need the scan.
“I asked him twice to get a CT scan, he said I was being overly protective and it was unnecessary,” she said.
The doctor said the radiation from the scanner would not be good for the 18-year-old, Diamond said.
Family members of George Diamond appear in the photo. From left to right, Perry, Eva, George, Christian, Shayla, Isiah and Vic Diamond
The doctor gave the teen advice about his head injury and his return to boxing, including written information about the concussion.
Following the incident, the gym suspended the teenager for medical reasons, but after his death, family members accessed his phone and sent material to the court which they claim showed he had been attending the gym while he was suspended.
Former Sting Gym co-owner John Paule said the gym lifted the suspension on Jan. 11, 2019 after a phone call with the teen.
That was two weeks before a doctor gave George the go-ahead to return to sparring.
George Diamond is pictured on the right with his mother Shaylay. The investigation into his death continues
Roisin Annesley, KC, from the gym, asked Mr Diamond if he agreed that the gym staff cared about his son.
“If someone cares about someone, they don’t put their life at risk,” he said. ‘If you care about him, you don’t put him back in the ring.
‘If I loved and cared for someone, I wouldn’t put their life at risk. Come on.’
The inquest before State Coroner John Cain continues.
