A 55-year-old man died in Brazil following an accident while performing a bench press exercise at a gym in Olinda, in the state of Pernambuco (northeast). A video released on social media shows Ronald José Salvador Montenegro in the moment in which the barbell slips from his hands, falling on his chest.
Security cameras filmed him managing to get up after the impact, but then collapsing to the ground shortly after. Gym staff and other customers immediately came to his aid and called an ambulance. Montenegro was transported conscious to the emergency room in Olinda, but arrived in cardiac arrest and did not survive his injuries. At the time of the exercise, the victim was lifting 30 kilograms per side, in addition to the approximately 15 kilograms of the barbell.
According to his family members, Montenegro had more than 30 years of bodybuilding experience. The president of the Pernambuco Regional Physical Education Council, Lúcio Beltrão, explained to the G1 portal that the way he held the bar, known as the “suicide grip” or “false grip”, may have contributed to the bar slipping from his hands.