Drunk and trapped under a car, Japan international rugby star Takuma Asahara rescued by teammates
Test prop misses training camp after being trapped under vehicle while lying on Tokyo street following night of celebrating
Japan national rugby team prop Takuma Asahara is used to pressure during test scrums but that is nothing compared to a car pinned on top of him.
That is what happened in Tokyo early on Sunday morning after Asahara and his Toshiba Brave Lupus teammates were out celebrating victory over Red Sparks, Japanese media reported on Tuesday.
At 2.20am, after dinner and drinking, Asahara was laying on a road in the club’s home suburb of Fuchu when a man got in his car and pulled away.
The driver ran over the 31-year-old, pinning him underneath the vehicle.
The Japan Top Rugby League player’s teammates, including Japan captain Michael Leitch, lifted the car off him.
Police reports said Asahara sustained minor injuries and the club issued an apology soon after the incident.
Asahara was set to be involved in a national team training camp in Wakayama but was ruled out with “unspecified injuries” in a Monday statement from the Japan Rugby Football Union.
The 1.79-metre prop is listed at weighing 113 kilograms. The four-door car in the video would weigh at least 10 times that.
Japan host the Rugby World Cup next year.
