New Zealand teenager dies after taking part in rugby-inspired craze

A Team Canada rugby ball sits on the turf prior to a men's match between Scotland and Canada in Ottawa on Saturday, July 6, 2024. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Sean Kilpatrick

Sydney, Australia — A teenager has died in New Zealand after taking part in a rugby-inspired craze that sees participants sprint into each other head-on with no protective gear, police said Tuesday.

Fuelled by social media and sometimes playing out in front of large crowds, the “run-it-straight” challenge has swept across New Zealand and Australia.

Organized run-it-straight competitions offer thousands of dollars in prize money but the trend has ignited fears of concussion and other serious injuries.

A 19-year-old died in New Zealand’s North Island after playing the game with friends over the weekend, police said in a statement.

“The man suffered a serious head injury when tackled and was taken to hospital by friends,” police inspector Ross Grantham said.

“Tragically, he passed away in hospital on Monday night.

“We would urge anyone thinking about taking part in a game or event like this to consider the significant safety and injury risks.”

Grantham said the teenager had been taking part in an “impromptu game among friends”, rather than a planned event.

“The tackle game played by the group of friends was based on a social media-driven trend where participants compete in full-contact collisions without protective gear.”

‘Horrendous’

Organized run-it-straight events have drawn interest from ex-professional rugby players.

Former Leicester, Montpellier and Fiji winger Nemani Nadolo was a celebrity participant at one event earlier this year.

Experts have likened the craze to a combat sport, warning that participants face serious concussion risks.

One organized competition based in Australia described it as the “world’s fiercest, new collision sport”.

It involved one runner and one tackler charging into each other from 20 metres (65 feet) apart, the competition said.

A run-it-straight event in New Zealand’s largest city Auckland was briefly halted last week when a participant started convulsing on the ground, local media reported.

Brain injury charity Headway has condemned the competitions.

“There’s some horrendous and really distressing videos,” chief executive Stacey Mowbray told national broadcaster Radio New Zealand.

“Going into seizure, having obvious brain injury, that’s what we can see.”

Rugby and other sports are grappling with an emerging body of evidence linking head contact with degenerative brain disease.

Chronic traumatic encephalopathy, or CTE, is known to cause violent moods, dementia and depression.

Injuries from head blows have also been linked to other disorders such as motor neurone disease, early onset dementia, epilepsy and Parkinson’s disease.