Dirga, Digital Explainer
Explainer - A 19-year-old from
Palmerston North died recently playing a version of the
controversial violent 'Run It' contest.
knock on the head kill? Here's what you need to know about
brain injuries.
What is Run It?
An Australian
creation that has taken off in Aotearoa thanks to social
media, 'Run It Straight' is a combat sport.
field, a ball runner and defender charge
at full speed toward one another without helmets or
safety gear.
The participant who "dominates" the
contact is deemed the winner.
Events held in New
Zealand recently offer cash prizes, including a $200,000
prize advertised for the winner of the final.
sporting groups and health experts have condemned the
contests, including NZ
Rugby and NZ Rugby League.
What happened to Ryan
Satterthwaite?
The 19-year-old Palmerston North man
Monday night in hospital, after suffering a catastrophic
head injury on Sunday, 25 May playing an unofficial Run
It-style game with friends.
Police said it was an
unspectacular tackle that led to the
Manawatū area commander inspector Ross
Grantham told RNZ's Checkpoint that Ryan's head
didn't hit anything hard during the tackle.
just an impromptu event with some mates that got together
and the two men run towards each other, and from that
collision, this young man Ryan has received such a terrible
injury that it's been fatal," Grantham said.
doesn't look like his head has hit anything hard, hasn't hit
the ground, or his mate's body or head. It's the movement
that has caused this injury."
Satterthwaite's family
have urged people not to take part in the game, with his
uncle calling it "the most stupid thing I've ever
The death comes after two other men were
knocked unconscious and required medical attention during a
competition at
Auckland's Trust Arena.
What happens to the brain
with this kind of impact?
People don't understand how
fragile the brain really is, said Dr Helen
Murray, a neuroscientist and senior research fellow at
the University of Auckland's Centre for Brain
"The main thing to think about is our brain
is essentially floating in cerebrospinal fluid inside our
skull, so every time you bump the front of your skull, the
brain is moving around in your head.
"It's sort of
like an egg in an eggshell - if you shake it, you damage
what's inside. It's a very delicate structure."
to the head can cause bleeding or harm the careful
infrastructure inside our skulls.
"All of those
delicate folds of the brain are stretching and twisting, and
that can cause damage," she said. "Blood is not supposed to
be in direct contact with brain tissue."
Bleeding on
the brain can cause problems such as a stroke.
exact details of Satterthwaite's injuries have not been
revealed, but sudden death from a brain injury can also
occur because it regulates most of our body functions. If
the brain stem - which connects your brain to the spinal
cord - is affected, it can result in critical
"Your brain stem is really responsible for a
lot of what we call homeostatic functions, the things that
keep your body alive," Dr Murray said.
think about your heart beating, you don't think about your
breathing or your blood pressure, but your brain is always
making that happen all the time."
Several people are
believed to have suffered concussions - a brain injury
caused by a blow to the head - during Run It
activities.
Chief executive of the Headway brain
injury support charity Stacey Mowbray recently
told RNZ she found Run It Straight video footage
"horrendous and really distressing".
"We refer to
concussions as the invisible injury, so you don't have to
see anything initially to have had one."
hurt and not realise it right away?
Even if the
injury isn't immediately fatal, brain injuries can also
develop over years.
"Your brain is so precious and a
brain injury affects, not only your life, but your friends,
your family and the people around you, and it can last a
long, long time," Dr Murray said.
Haven't there been
concerns about brain injuries in contact sport for a
Absolutely, and the particularly stark nature
of Run It events has drawn attention to long-standing
research about sports players developing life-changing
Brain injuries in sport cost New Zealand
every year.
Some former athletes have been
diagnosed with Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy or CTE, a
progressive brain disease that can cause dementia-like
symptoms. Former All Black Carl Hayman has spoken out about
with the disease, which he was diagnosed with in his
Dr Murray is one
of New Zealand's leading experts on CTE and an ice
hockey player herself. She said contact sports can be played
safely, but events like Run It lacked
safeguards.
"There are some unique factors in this Run
It event that just make it a really, really heavy risk - the
fact that no-one is trying to avoid a collision, for
"You instantly have this high-force
component, the lack of regulation, people just kind of doing
this without safe tackling technique. Someone's judging the
collision, so there's an incentive for high
"So many sports have been doing a fantastic
job about learning to play more safely... but this is a big
step backwards."
What is the future of Run
West Auckland's Trusts Arena cancelled plans to
host the final event for the Runit Championship League after
holding trials there.
"Safety of all participants at
our venue is paramount and this activity presented safety
considerations that we could not overlook," Trusts Arena's
general manager of community engagement Lynette Adams told
the New Zealand Herald.
Should it be
After Satterthwaite's death, police said it
was not considered a criminal matter, but they would
continue to make inquiries on behalf of the
"We need people to stop participating in
activities where the intention is to hurt someone," AUT
professor of human performance Patria Hume told
the Science Media Centre. "Why is this not considered
Sports and Recreation Minister Mark Mitchell
is seeking advice on what could be done about the
RNZ's Nine To Noon last week he had asked Sport NZ for
advice to see if there was anything that could be done at a
government level.
Mitchell said it would likely
require a response from several
© Scoop Media
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