Two competitors in the UK badly hurt themselves while chasing a wheel of cheese down a hill. Every country has its fair share of unusual events and traditions, but the county of Gloucestershire is where you can find one of the strangest.
Cooper’s Hill is home to a bizarre and potentially dangerous annual event. Each year, crowds gather to witness Cheese Rolling, which last took place over the Bank Holiday weekend.
During the gathering, participants race down the exceptionally steep slope, trying to catch up with a large wheel of cheese. Injuries are commonplace, but one runner badly injured themselves on Monday. According to the Daily Mail, a competitor was chasing a 3KG cheese wheel when they tumbled and hurt themselves. Their injuries were so severe that emergency services reportedly took them to a local hospital in an air ambulance.
The incident delayed the event, but it eventually resumed after a short break. According to the BBC, two people were hospitalized during the gathering, which is run mainly by volunteers.
Authorities Declare Cheese Rolling An Extreme Sport
The BBC also explains that local authorities branded the annual event as “Unsafe” and categorized it as an extreme sport. U/daviess posted a short clip of a competitor snagging some serious airtime in the 2025 event to Reddit.
The footage is brief, but you can see one competitor dramatically bounce down the hill. Event organizers ultimately had to catch him to prevent further injury. It’s unclear if this death-defying runner required hospital treatment. The BBC explains that despite health warnings, Cheese Rolling has gathered international attention over recent years. Streaming superstar IShowSpeed even reportedly showed up at the event in 2024. He required medical assistance after participating.
The Daily Mail says that the strange event has been a tradition for at least 600 years. Authorities shut it down in 2009 and 2011, but the event still took place, just unofficially.
The council said, “The cheese rolling at Cooper’s Hill is a unique tradition in our county, and we have no desire to stop it.” However, they stress that the events have no official organizer. As a result, there is no documentation or plan in place to keep competitors safe.