Video shows teen powerlifting champion tragically crushed under 600-pound weight

A recently surfaced video reveals a tragic incident in which a teenage powerlifting champion lost his life while attempting a 600-pound squat during a routine training session in India

Yashtika Acharya, a 17-year-old powerlifting prodigy and gold medalist, was captured on camera struggling to lift the immense weight out of a squat rack, with a trainer positioned behind her as a spotter, as per reports from NewsX.

Tragedy struck swiftly as her legs gave way, causing her to fall backward uncontrollably, while the heavy bar descended, fatally snapping her neck as she was bent over beneath it.

Whose fault is this? Coach or weight lifter or just a freak incident? National champion weightlifter #YashtikaAcharya died after 270 KG barbell falls on her neck in #Bikaner pic.twitter.com/L7Jv7OCEY0

— Alok Kumar (@dmalok) February 20, 2025

Local officer Vikram Tiwari recounted the harrowing event, stating, "During the attempt, she suddenly lost balance, and the bar came crashing down on her neck," highlighting the devastating outcome of the training session at a gym in the Bikaner district of Rajasthan, near India's border with Pakistan.

Despite swift efforts from fellow gym members to remove the weight and her coach's attempts at CPR, Acharya showed no signs of life and was pronounced dead shortly after being rushed to a nearby hospital on that fateful Tuesday, as reported by The Week.

Acharya, who had clinched a gold medal at the National Bench Press Championship in Goa just the previous October, tragically lost her life in the pursuit of her passion.

Following a post-mortem examination, Acharya's family opted not to file a complaint, and her body was subsequently released to them, according to NewsX.

Additionally, the trainer accompanying Acharya during the ill-fated session sustained minor injuries as a result of the incident, as confirmed by the authorities.