‘Barbaric’: Viral social media craze slammed after teen’s death
A leading concussion expert has slammed the self-styled sport Run It Straight as “barbaric” and said it has no place in a civilised society.
NSW
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A social media phenomenon, Run It Straight involves participants sprinting into each other with one carrying a football. New Zealand teen Ryan Satterthwaite died from injuries sustained during an impromptu game with friends.
Despite widespread backlash, official competitions are emerging on both sides of the Tasman, drawing hundreds to watch combatants on what one “Championship League” describes as a 20m x 4m “battlefield”, where “victory belongs to the one who dominates the collision”.
Olympic hero and Australian Sports Commission chief executive Kieren Perkins has spoken out against this “dangerous activity”, while Melbourne Storm’s Nelson Asofa-Solomona has parted ways with the most high-profile of several outfits organising these official “challenges”.
But that organisation, RUNIT, insists the controversial craze is “here to stay”.
Adrian Cohen, the founding CEO of concussion assessment program Headsafe, said he viewed Run It Straight as “an activity designed to create a brain injury”.
“I’m hard-pressed to think of a more dangerous pursuit,” he said. “Perhaps being shot out of a cannon.”
Dr Cohen, a former senior lecturer at Sydney University, sits on the advisory board of the Concussion Legacy Foundation, the medical advisory panel of the NSW Combat Sports Authority, and helped create the Australian Sports Brain Bank.
Asked if he was surprised by the online popularity of Run It Straight, he replied: “I’m not, in the same way people thought 2000 years ago that going down to the Colosseum on a Saturday afternoon to watch some Christians being fed to the lions sounded like a good day out. As a culture, we have a history we should not be particularly proud of in enjoying blood sports.
“The idea that we should be creating new ones with what we know about brain health and about the dangers, it’s absolutely ludicrous.”
Dr Cohen said a major concern was a lack of regulation.
“Unfortunately, this is not a sport and it’s certainly not a combat sport that comes under their legislation. So, as a society, we need to look at this and decide it’s a bad idea,” he said. “I don’t know who in the government is prepared to put up their hand and say that’s the case but if they did there’d be a lot of people that would agree with them, not least the parents and friends of this poor kid in NZ.”
A spokesman for NSW Sports Minister Steve Kamper said: “We can’t legislate against every bad idea. If you want to play contact sport, sign up to your local club so you can learn to play in a safe environment”.
Mr Perkins said Run It Straight did not align with “any of our advice when it comes to protecting Australians from concussions and brain injuries”.
“We want all young people to stay active, but it must be done in a safe way. Let’s hope, for the sake of our community, this activity is a phase that is quickly moved on from.”
Dr Cohen said the risk attached to major collisions was not always well understood.
“There is no such thing as a tough brain,” he warned. “And concussions don’t just happen from a blow to the head but from energy transferred from a blow anywhere – the head or the body – to the head.
“You can also have a second impact if the head is hitting the ground. So someone’s just got to say we don’t need this.”
Michael Bramble, a father of two boys who has connections to Hunters Hill Rugby Club, has major concerns.
“It’s just an unsafe risk that kids should not be taking,” Mr Bramble, whose sons are aged three and five, said.
“If my son came home and said he wanted to take part in the challenge, I’d sit down and have a stern conversation with him about why it’s unsafe. I’d be quite worried.
“These kinds of online challenges are a real danger, especially when people don’t understand the risks.”
He said junior rugby clubs worked hard to provide safe, structured environments.
“At this age, kids start with no contact,” he said. “As they develop, they’re slowly introduced to key aspects like tackling, but only when ready.”
While it has racked up tens of millions of views since taking off online earlier this year, the phenomenon has more critics than fans.
But the controversy has not deterred Melbourne-based RUNIT, which has distanced itself from the fatal tragedy.
“We do not encourage any copying of the sport as it should only be performed under the strict conditions,” a RUNIT spokesman said.
“RUNIT will continue to educate our followers on the risks associated.”
RUNIT founder Rennie Lautolo-Molimau also wrote “We’re here to stay” in an Instagram story on Wednesday.
Asofa-Solomona was heavily involved in the early days of RUNIT, appearing in a promotional video in February and attending a trial event with teammates Ryan Papenhuyzen, Jahrome Hughes and Will Warbrick in March.
While Asofa-Solomona has since parted ways with RUNIT over safety concerns, promotional material featuring him and his teammates remains online. Asofa-Solomona is now promoting a much safer competition called “Big Steppa”.
A spokesman for the Storm, which is not involved with RUNIT, said Papenhuyzen, Hughes and Warbrick had only attended one event to support Asofa-Solomona.
The NRL declined to comment on RUNIT, while Rugby Australia said it wanted “absolutely nothing to do with it.”
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