A 17-year-old teenage powerlifting girl died in a tragic accident after a 600-pound bar with weights fell on her neck. India native Yashtika Acharya, a junior gold medalist, passed away on February 18 while training at a gym in Rajasthan's Bikaner district.
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600 Pound Bar Fatally Breaks 17-Year-Old Powerlifter's Neck
The Times of India reported that the 595-pound bar the young powerlifter was training with fell and broke her neck. Although someone was supervising her session, accidents can happen, especially when dealing with such heavy weights.
Doctors later declared Acharya dead after they rushed her to the hospital. This is according to Naya Shahar Station House Officer (SHO) Vikram Tiwari, as per Indian Express. The outlet also reported that her trainer suffered from minor injuries during the incident.
"Yashtika was lifting weights at the gym, Power Headquarters, under her trainer's supervision," said Tiwari. "During the attempt, she suddenly lost balance, and the bar came crashing down on her neck. Fellow gym members quickly rushed to remove the weight, while her coach tried CPR, but she showed no signs of recovery."
Powerlifting is a competitive but dangerous sport that requires intense training. If done incorrectly, it can lead to serious injuries and even death, such as in this case. Although it wasn't in a powerlifting scenario, one California woman snapped her hip while doing hip thrusts with a barbell on her.
Soon after they handed over Acharya's body to her family after a post-mortem, and so far the family hasn't filed a complaint. We're unsure of how they feel about the video of the horrifying incident going viral on social media.
In response to her death and the video displaying her last moments alive, netizens have mourned her death online. "As a mom and a weight lifter, my heart is shattered for her family," one wrote.
Some commenters have also expressed frustration, calling the trainer "careless" for not following certain safety practices. "This is murder due to negligence," a viewer said.
Another mentioned how the ground should be "absolutely flat when doing squats," calling it "pure negligence." Someone else mentioned the mats below her feet, claiming she may have "tripped in those 1 dollar mats."
