Luxon says people need to take 'personal responsibility' following Palmy teen's death.
Video / Mark Mitchell
A New Zealand-based organisation has livestreamed a scaled-down “run it straight” event in a backyard.
It comes after the death of a teenager in Palmerston North last week from head injuries suffered while participating in a copycat event of the controversial social media craze.
Up the Guts NZ cancelled itsrun it straight event at Barfoot & Thompson Stadium in Kohimarama last month, with organiser Kimami Ngaluafe citing backlash from other similar events.
Though the location for last night’s event by the group was kept secret, it was understood to have taken place in Auckland and been livestreamed to more than 13,000 viewers on social media.
Auckland-based Up the Guts NZ livestreamed a run it straight event held in a backyard on Thursday evening.
The organisation boasted a $5000 cash prize for the winner of the event and claimed it would “raise awareness for mental health and suicide in our neighbourhoods”.
The outdoor event took place beneath a large gazebo with participants squaring off from either side of the restricted perimeter of the property. No medical personnel could be clearly identified in the crowd of about 50.
Ngaluafe has been approached for comment.
Earlier, he said Up the Guts had implemented greater rules and safety measures than other organisations running similar events.
“For example, we have half the running distance to minimise collision impact. Mouthguards, headgear and shoulder protection are compulsory here. We have on-field spotters, first-aiders and medics on-site. Participant safety is our No 1 priority.
“But not only that, our biggest goal is to raise awareness for mental health and suicide. Mental Health New Zealand stats show the Māori and Pasifika, especially our men, have the highest rates of suicide in this country, particularly our young males aged 15 to 24 years old.”
The outdoor event took place beneath a large gazebo with participants squaring off from either side of the restricted perimeter of the property.
The event comes after the death of 19-year-old Ryan Satterthwaite at Palmerston North Hospital last week from serious head injuries suffered while taking part in a copycat run it straight-style game.
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon called Satterthwaite’s death an “absolute tragedy” and said people should take personal responsibility.
He said all evidence suggested that partaking in the sport is “a dumb thing to do”.
“When it’s happening at a 21st birthday party unofficially, that is not something the Government can solve through legislation or through regulation.
“All I can say to young adults who are participating is you’ve got some personal responsibility in this. You’re hearing the advice from police, from the medical fraternity, from Government, from principals saying don’t do it.
“To the adults that are involved in more formal organisation of it and are influencing it and leading this out on social media, I think you need to stop and I can’t be any clearer.
“The evidence is that it’s a dumb thing to do and you should stop.”
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has described run it straight events as a dumb thing to do. Photo / Mark Mitchell
Sport and Recreation Minister Mark Mitchell told the Herald he had asked officials for advice in terms of “what powers and actions can be taken by the Government” to respond to unregulated activities and events that pose a significant level of risk.
The front-runner of the new sport, Australian-based organisation Runit Championship League, was due to host its final event in Auckland next week.
It hosted two “trial events” at Trusts Arena in Henderson last month, giving away $20,000 cash prizes to the winners.
Runit Championship League has refused to confirm to the Herald if the final event is still going ahead or where it will be hosted.
Collisions ‘comparable to severe car crashes’
Professor Patria Hume, sports scientist and injury prevention expert at Auckland University of Technology, said Satterthwaite’s death was preventable.
“[Before his death] I stated that it is very clear from the number of concussions from the small number of ‘running at each other events’ that have occurred, that this is going to result in death,” Hume said.
“I also said it unfortunately takes a death to make people take notice and to stop these high-injury-risk activities.”
She said the collisions in run it straight were more than five times the force of a typical rugby tackle.
“People are not trying to evade each other, but are purposefully hitting each other as hard as they can.”
Sports Medicine New Zealand national chairman Dr Stephen Kara said the biomechanics of the sport’s collisions were “comparable to severe car crashes”.
“When two 105kg participants – the average body mass of rugby players – sprint towards each other, the impact force can exceed 16,800 newtons. This force is over three times that of a professional boxer’s punch and more than 1.5 times the force of falling from 2m.”
He said such high-impact collisions carried a significant risk of severe brain injury, fractures and death.
“This activity doesn’t just endanger participants, but makes a mockery of the considerable effort and investment contact sports have made on impact-readiness training, brain injury awareness, reporting and management, all in a bid to ensure the safety and wellbeing of athletes.
“[It] is not a sport. It is jousting without sticks and, whilst that may have been a sport in medieval times, it has no place in today’s sporting arenas.”
Benjamin Plummer is an Auckland-based reporter for the New Zealand Herald who covers sport and breaking news. He has worked for the Herald since 2022.
