06 March 2023 , 13:51
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This is the terrifying moment a trapeze artist plunges nearly 30ft to the ground after losing his balance during a live performance on the Wheel of Death.
Colleagues feared the worst as David Castaneira lay motionless after his fall on Saturday afternoon.
But miraculously what could have been a tragedy ended with him suffering just bruises and needing 10 stitches to a wound under his chin.
David, a trapeze artist with Circo Quiros who suffered his accident as he performed with brother Michael at a venue next to Islaazul Shopping Centre in the Madrid neighbourhood of Carabanchel, told Spanish media: “I’m okay. I’ve got a little cut under my chin that needed 10 stitches.
"Now I’m resting but next weekend I’ll be working again.”
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David Castaneira falls while trying to perform the 'Wheel of Death' (SOLARPIX.COM)His brother added: “It was a co-ordination problem and he fell from the highest point of the Wheel of Death.”
The incident happened just after 5.30pm on Saturday.
David was released from hospital after tests and four hours in observation.
He was filmed being carried away by stretcher and waving to members of the audience after the show was halted for around 40 minutes before restarting.
He had been performing the death-defying stunt with his brother (SOLARPIX.COM)A fellow performer at the circus, which will be at its current venue until March 26, said: “It’s a miracle it’s all ended as well as it has.”
In July 2018 a circus performer was rushed to hospital after plunging to the ground during a terrifying Wheel of Death act in front of crowds.
The man seemingly lost his grip and fell to the floor during Circus Zyair's show in Scotland, with some estimating the fall to be around 20 feet.
The Wheel of Death is a large rotating apparatus on which performers carry out synchronised acrobatic skills.
People rush on stage to help after the fall (SOLARPIX.COM)It is said to have originated in America during the early 1930s and was also known as the Space Wheel.
Some early versions were performed by a single artist and incorporated a counterbalance on the other end.
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Following fatal accidents, the apparatus fell out of favour for a time until it was re-introduced in the 1970s under the name Wheel of Death.
In September last year, a Russian circus crowd screamed in horror as they watched similar scenes.
Parents and children were frozen in terror as Tatyana Zolotukhina, failed to catch her co performer's hand during a complicated routine.
The 26-year-old was left hospitalised after she plunged to the ground, falling 16ft in front of the shocked crowd at the circus performance in Russia.
The crowd screamed as Tatyana misses her mark and falls, followed by a deathly silence as her husband rushes to help her before carrying her from the arena.
Applause erupted shortly after as her co-performer - who was also her husband - quickly carried his injured wife from the ring at the circus in Omsk.