Everyone knows that martial arts training is tough.
It takes dedication to regularly practice and persists through setbacks for not weeks or months but years or even decades.
Much like sports training sessions, martial arts training can be physically demanding as well, which is why so many of its famous proponents are incredibly fit.
Because of its demands, coaches might push trainees to go beyond what their bodies are normally capable of to achieve proficiency in the art.
But one judo coach recently went too far.
7YO Boy Fell into a 70-Day Coma & Died After Thrown On the Ground Repeatedly by Judo Coach
A 7-year-old boy in Taiwan died after he was slammed to the floor 27 times during judo practice by his coach.
The boy suffered severe brain haemorrhaging after the class and fell into a coma. He was put on life support.
He also needed a ventilator to breathe.
Nearly 70 days later, because his blood pressure and heartbeat started plummeting, his parents decided to take him off life support, and the boy passed.
So, why did the judo coach throw him violently to the ground over 27 times?
Called His Coach an “Idiot”
At one point during practice, the young boy refused to continue and called his coach “an idiot”.
A rational person might simply tell him off for his remark, but this coach started throwing the boy violently to the ground repeatedly.
The coach even made an older student slam the young boy on the floor as well, before picking him up and throwing him to the ground himself.
He only stopped after the boy vomited. And when the 7-year-old passed out, the coach allegedly accused him of faking it.
Unbeknownst to the coach, the boy’s uncle was filming the session the whole time, and caught the attack on camera.
He reportedly filmed the practice session to show the boy’s mother that judo was unsuitable for him.
The coach, who is in his late 60s, has been charged with physical assault resulting in serious injury and using a minor to commit a crime.
Now that the boy has passed, however, prosecutors will change his charge to that of “injury causing death”.
If convicted, he could face anything from a minimum of seven years in jail up to life imprisonment.
He was released earlier this month on bail of NT$100,000 (S$4800).
Why Didn’t Any Adult Stop the Attack?
Since the boy’s uncle as well as other adults were present at the practice session, people are understandably puzzled as to why no one stopped the coach.
Well, according to the BBC, there is a long history of obedience and reverence for teachers in Taiwan, which is why none of the adults even questioned the coach.
The incident has also brought other similar issues to light, such as corporal punishment in schools and a culture of child abuse that begins at home.
As for the boy’s uncle who witnessed the attack, the boy’s mother said he feels “terrible for what happened”.
It was later found that the coach was unlicensed.
Investigations also revealed that the child was in his second week of judo lessons, and thus did not know how to land properly when he was thrown.
Featured Image: Tito Wong/ shutterstock.com