TACOMA, Wash. — Their son is gone.
Luke Beardemphl, a standout Tacoma soccer player during his years at Stadium High School, died last year at 24, following a seven-year battle with Hodgkin’s lymphoma.
But Luke’s parents, Mike and Stephanie Beardemphl, now worry about the kids who will come after him, running, rolling and diving into the more than 11,000 artificial turf soccer fields around the country — including at more than a dozen schools in the Tacoma School District — just as their goalkeeper son did.
Most of those synthetic turf fields are cushioned with a material called crumb rubber, made from ground-up used tires. The tiny pellets are loosely distributed as infill between artificial blades of grass woven into a carpet-like base. Modern turf fields are the successors to the original 1960s-era AstroTurf. Athletes who play on today’s fields that use crumb rubber infill are familiar with the “little black dots” that are kicked up during a game or practice, reported The News Tribune.
Families such as the Beardemphls have added their voices to a growing chorus of concern about whether the rubber specks that stick to skin, hair and clothing, and that get in players’ eyes, mouths and open wounds, contain toxic substances that contribute to cancer in young athletes.
“To me it’s obvious,” said Stephanie Beardemphl. “There is a problem, and there needs to be more action by the government.”
Her husband, Mike, compares crumb rubber to materials like asbestos or the pesticide DDT — both thought to be useful products until their dangers were discovered.
