TRIBUNE LOOKS AT THE LEGAL END OF SPORTS INJURIES

     A report in Sunday's CHICAGO TRIBUNE outlines a trend that
threatens to revolutionize athletics: "Should a football player
sue his coach, team, school district or doctor if he suffers
permanent disability because of improper medical care, faulty
equipment or even the wrong playing surface?"  Boston attorney
Richard Sawin, who represents injured athletes believes so:
"Despite rule changes and advances in protective equipment, there
still continues to be a small number of catastrophic injuries
each year."  Sawin says that injuries that result from coaches
failing to teach proper tackling, trainers and team physicians
failing to recognize signals, and mistreatment by emergency room
physicians, can be targeted.  As a result, many institutions are
now making safety and injury seminars mandatory for players,
parents and coaches.  Also at issue: Are team physicians under
pressure to keep injured players on the field?  (Tricia Gura,
CHICAGO TRIBUNE, 12/11).