Chinese acrobat who lost his wife in terrifying on-stage fall seriously injured in second performance incident

By Nectar Gan, CNN

Hong Kong (CNN) — A Chinese acrobat who lost his wife and performance partner to a terrifying fall on stage last year was seriously injured in another show this week, state media reported.

Zhang Kai, 39, plunged several meters to a hard cement ground while performing an aerial silks routine on Monday night, after two pieces of fabric he was holding broke loose from the top of a crane.

The horrific moment was captured by Zhang’s own livestream of his performance in Henan province on Douyin, the sister app of TikTok in China, according to the state-run Xiaoxiang Morning Herald.

Zhang, who suffered injuries to his face and leg fractures, was out of life-threatening danger as of Wednesday but remained in the intensive care unit, his family told the Chengdu Business Daily, another state-owned newspaper.

Zhang’s late wife, surnamed Sun, fell to her death during an aerial silks performance with her husband in a village in Anhui province in April last year, sparking horror and outcry on social media over the lack of safety measures for performers.

Online footage of that incident showed the couple being pulled high into the air by a crane above a large outdoor stage. As they swung in mid-air, Sun wrapped her arms around her husband’s head and hung off him during a transition act. But she lost her grip and plunged to the hard stage amid screams from the crowd. Zhang attempted to catch her with his legs but failed, the footage showed.

The tragedy caused shock on Chinese social media. Many users questioned why Sun did not wear any safety belt, and why there was no safety net or crash mat on the ground. Others called for stricter regulations on the acrobatic industry and better protection for performers.

An investigation into last year’s incident by the local government found the company which hosted the show had not obtained prior approval from authorities and failed to provide essential safety protection and emergency measures during the performance. The use of a crane in the performance was also a violation of regulations, the government said.

China’s Acrobats Association issued a statement at the time, calling for acrobatic groups and performers to pay greater attention to safety measures.

On his Douyin bio, Zhang, a father of two, said last year’s incident “took away the person I loved most, leaving me alone to support the entire family.”

Before Monday’s performance, Zhang said in a video on Douyin that he took the gig to stand in for a friend who was supposed to perform but couldn’t make it to the show that night, calling it a “new challenge.”

“Maybe when you guys see this, like me, you will feel a mix of sadness and an indescribable emotion,” he said as he turned his phone to show the construction crane used to hang the performance silks. “Later I’ll use this account to show you guys on livestream.”

On Douyin, many users wished Zhang a speedy recovery. Some urged him to switch to another job for his kids, citing the risks.

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CNN’s Hassan Tayir contributed to this report.