A Russian weightlifter suffered a gruesome broken leg while attempting to squat a 550-pound barbell, Sunday.
Yaroslav Radashkevich’s right leg abruptly snapped in half during a lift at the Eurasian Weightlifting Championship in Khabarovsk in Russia, the New Zealand Herald reported.
The video shows the 20-year-old weightlifter approaching the barbell suspended over his shoulders, setting up to begin the lift, pushing it off the hooks, and then dipping down into his squat. But before he gets to the end of his squat, his right leg visibly collapses beneath him.
Warning: Video is disturbing.
Radashkevich later told the media that he already knew he had been competing on an injured leg.
“It turns out that two weeks ago my leg began to hurt badly. I thought that it was just pulled, so I did not pay attention. I just had painkillers, trained, and prepared. I was also advised it would pass by itself, heal,” the weightlifter said.
Radashkevich noted that during his later attempts, the pains in his legs got worse until the snap occurred on his third attempt.
The young weightlifter reportedly suffered fractures in his tibia and fibula and is now recovering.
Follow Warner Todd Huston on Twitter @warnerthuston.
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