Medical student Mohammed Farraj, 21, was performing calf raises at the Sportspark gym when a heavy bar dropped and forced his neck to the ground – he died at the scene
A gym user who “loved life” died after slipping off a plastic step while using a weight machine as the bar dropped and hit his head, an inquest heard.
Proceedings heard how medical student Mohammed Farraj was a fitness fan and would run 10k every morning. Detective sergeant Robert Waring explained how the 21-year-old was performing calf raises at the Sportspark gym while using a “plastic step aerobic block”. CCTV footage showed it tipped towards him, causing the bar to drop and “forced his neck to the ground”. Two gym users quickly came to his aid and called for paramedics as they started CPR, but Mr Farraj died at the scene.
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His father Hashim Farraj said in a statement read by the coroner’s officer his son was a devout Muslim and “loved life”. He added his son grew up at the family home in Stoke-on-Trent, was part of a boxing club and “took his fitness and his health very seriously”.
He said: “He liked to go to the gym and would run 10k in the morning on a regular basis.” He added he had been training for an Ironman triathlon event.
Dr Trey Koev, one of the pair at the gym who came to his aid, said he had been “less than two metres away” from Mr Farraj, using another piece of gym equipment. He said Mr Farraj had been using the Smith machine “with a stepping platform to perform calf raises”.
He said: “All of a sudden whilst my gym partner was finishing his set I saw him slip onto the platform. The bar carrying the weight came down. [He] struggled to his feet very rapidly then tumbled. Both my gym partner and I rushed to him as we were the closest to him”.
Dr Koev said there had been red-coloured weights on either end of the bar – indicating 25kg each – and the bar weighed approximately 15kg, with the total weight as 65kg.
Benjamin Price, head of sports operations at UEA Sportspark, said: “It appears Mohammed followed another person who had been using that equipment. It appears they had put the stops at the lowest level to perform the exercise they had chosen to perform – a hip thrust exercise.”
He said that it appeared a warning about the stops had not been on the Smith machine at the time, but was now in place. The inquest was told Mr Farraj had a fast-track induction to the gym in October 2022.
Norfolk assistant coroner Johanna Thompson concluded Mr Farraj’s death was an accident. She said “safety stops on the equipment hadn’t been appropriately adjusted prior to” Mr Farraj performing his calf raise exercises, adding: “He used a step aerobic block to stand on. In doing so he slipped, causing the weight he had been lifting to fall onto him. This resulted in him sustaining a fatal head injury.”
The UEA Sportspark said in a statement after the conclusion of the inquest in Norwich that it was “deeply saddened” by the death of Mr Farraj. They said: “The safety of our gym’s users is, and always will be, our priority.
“Following this incident, a full investigation took place, by the police and the HSE, who were both satisfied with the arrangements in place. UEA Sportspark has co-operated fully with the coroner’s inquiry and acknowledges the conclusion of the inquest.”
