WORCESTER—High school basketball teams from around greater Worcester came together for a spirited preseason tournament at Doherty Memorial High School on September 20 to honor the memory of 14-year-old Harris Wolobah, who tragically passed away two years ago attempting the viral “Paqui One Chip Challenge.”
Begun last year as a series of two basketball training sessions held at Clark University, the Hoops for Harris event shifted to an eight-team tournament format for 2025 featuring five teams from Worcester (Burncoat, Doherty, North, South, Worcester Tech), two from Shrewsbury (Shrewsbury High and Saint John’s) and one from Holden (Wachusett).
Players wore specialty jerseys designed by Anthony Barbosa of Bosa Sports and Community. On the back of each jersey was the phrase “Long Live Harris” scripted in all capital letters.
The all-day tournament featured competitive games and a chance to remember the young teen who loved to play basketball as a Doherty student. As if by divine intervention, the host Highlanders captured the tournament championship with a win over Saint John’s in the finals. But the event was really about much more than basketball.
“It was an amazing day,” said event organizer Doug Hill. “I’m grateful for all the athletes, coaches, volunteers and families that came out to support this event and the Wolobah family. It was competitive, but more importantly it paid tribute to a young man who’s life was lost too soon. Long live Harris.”
Members of the Wolobah family in attendance also expressed their appreciation and gratitude to the student-athletes who participated in the event as well as those individuals who worked to make the second installment of Hoops for Harris possible.
“I mean just being here seeing everybody in society but not seeing my son, that alone is emotional but I’m also grateful to see all the kids that came out to support him and support our family,” said Lois Wolobah, mother of Harris, to Boston 25 News.
Wolobah lost his life on Sept. 1, 2023, while attempting the extremely spicy “One Chip Challenge.” The cause of his death was determined to be cardiopulmonary arrest caused by ingesting a large quantity of capsaicin, the active compound in chili peppers.
Doug Sheff, an attorney for the family, noted that a wrongful death lawsuit is still pending against Paqui, the manufacturer of the tortilla chips. Paqui voluntarily pulled the product from store shelves in September 2023 after the incident.
Mike Vigneux is a freelance writer in Worcester with more than 20 years of experience in the fields of municipal government, communications, and public relations. An avid fan of all sports, Mike enjoys telling the stories of local athletes and their teams. He holds two degrees from Clark University, a bachelor of arts in Communication and a master of science in Professional Communication. He can be reached at Mikevigs@gmail.com
