In several countries in Europe, dozens of teenagers have been hospitalized with trauma and fractures after attempting the “Superman challenge”. In response to this news, TikTok announced that it had banned the challenge to ensure user safety.
YOUTUBE | Screenshots of videos uploaded to social media
In the last few days dozens of girls and boys in several countries in Europe, they are ended up in hospital with broken bones, fractures and various types of injuries: several of them have been hospitalized and some will need surgery. The reason is a new social challenge that ended badly.
Is called “Superman challenge” and although, unlike other challenges created in the past on social media, it does not praiseself-harmturned out to be quite dangerous for those who take part in it. On the other hand, this is nothing new: let’s remember that just a few months ago a 14-year-old from Massachusetts died after taking part in a social challenge, which consisted of eating the spiciest potato chip in the world.
What is the Superman challenge
The challenge it is done in a group: a couple of people on one side, a couple on another line up in front of each other, holding hands in pairs with arms outstretched, while another participant leaps from behind long while imitating the famous superman pose. The other participants must catch it and then push it back in a new jump using only their arms. If all goes well, the challenge then ends with the participant attempting the jump which returns exactly to the starting position.
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It all seems harmless enough, yet in recent days several countries have registered an anomalous increase in arrivals to the emergency room by teenagers and very young children who had participated in the challenge. In Romaniathe director of the Alexandru Grigorescu hospital, Alexandru Ulici, raised the alarm, explaining that in his facility alone within a few days there were 20 boys were hospitalizedtwo of whom are waiting to be operated on because they have suffered rather severe trauma.
It’s no better for the North Macedonia: here, after 17 students were admitted to various facilities across the country, the Liberal Democratic Party sent an official request to TikTok so that it obscured the contents that showed people or children participating in the challenge. Even in Bosnia and Herzegovina there is talk of at least twenty hospitalizations.
The TikTok block
In fact, by doing a brief check on social media, Superman challenge themed videos are still found on YouTube or Instagramif you try to search for “superman challenge” on TikTok, the social network does not show any postsbut just a warning: “Your safety matters. Some online challenges can be dangerous, annoying, or even made up. Learn how to recognize harmful challenges so you can protect your health and well-being.”
After the news of the many hospitalizations due to the challenge, the Chinese social network has in fact decided to ban it and not make posts that refer to it more visible for security reasons. As demonstrated by the traumas suffered by children who ended up in hospital in Romania, Monte Negro and Bosnia and Herzegovina, the risks do not only concern the person who jumpsbut also the other participants, who use their forearms to catch it and relaunch it. In fact, due to their weight they risk suffer fractures or other traumamore or less serious.
