A gym goer has been accused of deliberately trying to injure a woman by unloading weights from one side of a barbell and causing it to crash on her leg.
The man appeared to cause the barbell to fall in an allegedly calculated move that was captured on CCTV.
Footage showed the woman standing near the rack while holding a water bottle and admiring her reflection in the mirror.
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The man started removing plates from the opposite side of the barbell before apparently waiting for her to move back into position.
He pulled off the final weight and the unbalanced barbell crashed onto the woman’s lower leg.
She suffered a swollen heel and a shattered watch screen but escaped serious harm, according to reports.
The episode unfolded in Yantai City in Shandong Province, China, yesterday (2 Jun).
Following the incident, the man claimed he simply became distracted during the exercise and was willing to take full responsibility and cooperate with compensation.
The woman also played down the episode, telling reporters it was “no big deal” and that she does not want to pursue the matter further.
She said it should simply serve “as a lesson to grow up”.
The gym where the incident occurred has described it as an operational error by a novice user, as reported by Need To Know.
Fitness enthusiasts warned that unilateral unloading of a barbell is a well-known gym safety violation that can cause exactly this type of sudden tip.
Many social media users labelled the man’s actions as causing “premeditated injury” and demanded that he face charges.
No police statement has yet been issued and it remains unclear whether a formal investigation or charges will follow.
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