\u201cAs a coach, man, I could not do that again, feels like you\u2019re just preparing dudes to go and get their heads knocked off and get brain bleeds and tap them on the back and squirt water in their face.\u201d<\/p>\n
Aloiai said the people behind the scenes did try to make the event as safe as possible, but he felt the sport was too dangerous to continue and pointed to moments where he attended to competitors who were knocked out.<\/p>\n
Former NRL player Josh Aloiai has distanced himself from Run Nation Championship after coaching at a recent Sydney event. Photo \/ Instagram<\/p>\n
\u201cThere was moments where I was holding these dudes who\u2019d just gotten knocked clean out, and they\u2019re snoring in front of a whole stadium of people yelling, and I\u2019m like, \u2018What the heck am I doing here?\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n
Tremaine Fernandez, founder and CEO of RNC, told the Herald that Aloiai was entitled to his views and the company respects any athlete\u2019s decision about their involvement in any sport.<\/p>\n
\u201cFor clarity, Josh was scheduled to be involved in a coaching capacity,\u201d Fernandez said.<\/p>\n
\u201cHowever, his direct involvement in athlete preparation was limited, and he did not attend training sessions to support the athletes in the lead-up to the event.<\/p>\n
\u201cRun Nation operates with defined rules, medical screening, and independent authority during competition.<\/p>\n
\u201cAthlete safety and oversight remain central to how we structure the format, and that will continue to evolve as the sport develops.\u201d<\/p>\n
Vulangi Olosoni, who won the Runit Championship League final, a competitor to RNC, in June, previously apologised for his role in influencing young people<\/a> to take part in the controversial sport after the death of New Zealand teenager Ryan Satterthwaite.<\/p>\n