The ball runner cops a shoulder to the head and slumps to the floor, before suffering what appears to be an involuntary repeat arm-jerking movement on the ground as he is crowded by hundreds of spectators, including children.
“Dumbest game ever ... And yet people [are] running out to celebrate over someone who almost lost his life,” one person commented on the video.
Another described the arm movement as a symptom of damage to or disruptions in brain activity.
A health website says arms often go into an unnatural position, known as the fencing response, during an impact that’s strong enough to cause traumatic brain injury.
Others slammed the act as “super-dangerous” and that the man “could have died”.
One of New Zealand’s leading neuroscientists and a chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) expert, Dr Helen Murray, told the Herald there is clearly “a high risk of head injury in this event”.
“From a CTE standpoint, we know that exposure to repeated head acceleration events is the biggest risk factor for CTE pathology, and therefore finding ways to reduce these impacts in contact sports is a priority for player safety,” Murray said.
“It appears there is no attempt to mitigate head acceleration events in this activity and the risk of significant injury is high given the intent to collide, so I do not support it.”
Murray also said she would “never support” celebrating such an injury as suffered by the individual in the video.
The Herald has approached the event’s organisers for comment on the man’s condition and the status of the event.
Knockout ‘not our aim’
It comes as a similar event touted as the “world’s fiercest new collision sport” is set to come to New Zealand next month.
The Runit Championship League is due to host its inaugural live tournament in Melbourne on Wednesday, with eight people – including NRL and Super Rugby stars – competing for a grand prize of A$20,000 ($21,500).
It will cross the Tasman on May 25, before going to the United States, Saudi Arabia and England later in the year.
It involves a runner and a tackler running full speed at each other on a 20m x 4m “battlefield” designed for “maximum action and non-stop intensity”.
“Victory belongs to the one who dominates the collision.”
Runit told the Herald the incident captured in the video was not in any way related to it and called it “quite distressing”.
“The video we felt was horrendous and backyard events such as that one was very disappointing to see.”
It said Runit was a professionally arranged combat sport in which athletes – selected based on trial days and merit of prior representative rugby league and union backgrounds – went through a “thorough screening process”.
“Yes, a knockout can potentially occur – but this is not the aim of our game. The aim is to dominate contact – whether you bump someone over or land a good clean hit,” organisers said.
“We disallow tackles below the waist and above the shoulders. A knockout like any other combat sport is a byproduct. Unlike other combat sport, however, it is not our aim.”
They said they felt their sport was safer than the likes of rugby league and AFL.
“Athletes are screened by a doctor pre and post matches, medics are present, and medical waivers inclusive of drug and blood tests are completed prior to any participation. Athletes train [or] are currently active players.”
Runit said mouthguards were compulsory. Headgear was optional.
The competition had top players such as former international rugby league prop and NRL grand final winner George Burgess taking on Super Rugby powerhouse Nemani Nadolo on Wednesday night in the Melbourne event.
“It highlights the level of differentiation between our league and these other backyard-type events.
“What we saw on that video is thoroughly disappointing – the lack of care, the filming and running in of children and spectators whilst a man was clearly seizing up on the ground.”
According to the healthline.com website, when a person experiences an impact that’s strong enough to cause traumatic brain injury such as a concussion, their arms often go into an unnatural position.
“This position – forearms extended or flexed, usually in the air – follows the impact and is known as the fencing response position. It lasts up to several seconds after the collision.
“The fencing response is often seen when a player is knocked down or knocked out during full-contact athletic competitions such as football, martial arts, boxing, rugby and hockey.”
ACC head of injury prevention Renee Graham said while the organisation helped people to recover from injuries regardless of who was at fault, sometimes people chose to take part in activities that carried high injury risks.
Based on footage Graham had seen, an activity like Runit appeared to pose a very high risk for brain and other serious injuries.
“ACC partners with key sport organisations to deliver sport-specific programmes in rugby union, netball, rugby league, football, touch and basketball. These programmes are designed to educate players, coaches and referees about how to prepare well, minimise injury risk and perform at their best.
“This international Runit event series sits outside of the influence of ACC’s sport partners (NZR and NZRL) who understand the demands and the risks of their games and who deliver a product that includes ongoing education for players and coaches on how to prepare well, become a good player and optimise performance while reducing the risk of serious injury.”
She said tackling was an advanced technique that took time and quality coaching to get right.
“Poor tackle technique puts both the tackler and the ball carrier at risk of injury.”
ACC encourages those who enjoy collision sports to support the rugby codes in NZ and participate within the regulated games and the structure that NZ Rugby League and NZ Rugby offered.
Benjamin Plummer is an Auckland-based reporter who covers sport and breaking news. He has worked for the Herald since 2022.
