As
a wrestling coach and health teacher, Janesville's Mike Niemezyk,
56, taught about the warning signs of a heart attack. Early
in 2005 he experienced them first-hand while packing for a
wrestling meet. After Mike felt pain and tightness in his
chest and shoulders, his local doctor ordered a stress test.
"I figured I could walk on a treadmill for hours,"
Mike says. "I lasted only four minutes." He was
immediately airlifted to Immanuel St. Joseph's Hospital on
the Mankato-based Mayo One helicopter. He underwent an angioplasty
to expand one of his heart arteries and a stent was inserted
to keep it open. "I was extremely fortunate to have this
kind of specialized care."
