From Israel, to Brazil: TikTok 'Superman Challenge' injures teens, sparks warnings

In Israel, at least 19 children and teenagers have been injured while participating in the TikTok "Superman Challenge" and required medical treatment.

The "Superman Challenge" involves participants mimicking Superman's iconic flying pose, often resulting in serious injuries from falls. In the challenge, two or more people hold hands to create a "platform," and a third person jumps onto their outstretched arms. After the jump, others may or may not catch the participant, leading to dangerous falls and injuries. A variant of the trend involves participants removing their hands during the jump, causing the jumper to fall to the ground, which has led to many recorded serious injuries and fractures, iefimerida reported.

Noa, a twelve-year-old girl from Israel, recounted her experience: "I feel better now, but it was so scary. My two friends and I decided to try the challenge, and then more girls joined in. At first, I was one of those throwing the others, but then it was my turn to be thrown. The first time, they couldn't lift me. The second time, they tried to throw me, but I don't remember anything from the moment I hit my head until I found myself in the ambulance," she is cited by iefimerida.

"She doesn't even have TikTok, so I didn't realize she could be exposed to such things,"' her mother, Nechama Tangi, said. "The teacher called me and told me that she had lost consciousness and was rolling her eyes. The kids threw her very high, and it had a bad ending. I was terrified when I received the call. When I arrived at the school, she wasn't speaking, she was confused, and the ambulance was already there," she said.

In Romania, more than 20 children have been hospitalized with serious fractures due to the "Superman Challenge," with reports of severe trauma and at least two children needing surgeries, CNN Greece reported. Two of the hospitalized children needed to undergo surgery, as stated by Enikos.

Doctors warn about the dangers, urging parents and teenagers to avoid imitating dangerous online trends. Dr. Gal Altberg emphasized that such activities can end in disaster and noted that challenges like these put participants in significant danger, from fractures to severe disabilities to life-threatening risks. Dr. Dana Zinger-Harel reported seeing numerous cases of teenagers injured while attempting the "Superman Challenge," including a 12-year-old girl who fell on her head and lost consciousness.

A 13-year-old student from Kalythion Junior High School in Rhodes was seriously injured while attempting the dangerous trend. The incident occurred during a school break when the student was playing with classmates.

After the fall, the student experienced seizures, which led to his intubation due to the severity of his condition, iefimerida reported. Medical examinations confirmed that he had suffered cranio-cerebral injuries, making his condition extremely critical, according to Proto Thema. Doctors at the General Hospital of Rhodes deemed it necessary to transfer the student to the Agia Sofia Children's Hospital in Athens. Due to bad weather conditions, there were delays in his transfer, but he was eventually flown by military helicopter, Enikos reported.

The principal of the school, Thomás Soldátos, reported that the supervising teacher was 20 meters away and did not realize what was happening until the student fell, Enikos stated.

Another student was injured during the "Superman Challenge" at a high school in Patras, Greece.

CNN Greece reported that five students at a school in Rio participated in the challenge, with one of them injuring their wrist. The principal of the school punished the students involved, issuing expulsions, according to Proto Thema.

TikTok has begun displaying warning messages on many videos related to the challenge, indicating that the publication "may be inappropriate for some audiences," as noted by Le Parisien.

Several schools, including those in France and Belgium, have taken measures to ban the challenge due to the risks it poses. Parents of students have been alerted to raise awareness about the dangers involved, Le Parisien reported. In Belgium, parents received letters regarding the dangers of the challenge after a first-grade child fell and was injured during the game, leading to a head injury, as reported by 20 Minutes.

Despite the warnings, videos of the challenge continue to accumulate thousands of likes and views on TikTok, especially among young people, with some videos having over 29 million views.

This article was written in collaboration with generative AI company Alchemiq