IShowSpeed: YouTuber goes to hospital after taking part in famous Gloucestershire cheese-rolling race

The internet personality, whose real name is Darren Jason Watkins Jr, took part in the annual cheese-rolling race on the steep slope of Cooper’s Hill on Monday. May 27. Speed, who grew to prominence with FIFA and Fortnite streaming sessions, took part in the men’s race, with his 4th-place run aggravating a previous leg injury.

However, he was in good spirits after finishing the race, telling BBC News: "It looks scary, but once that first slide, you're like, 'you know what, I can do this'. I want to do it again because I know how to win now."

The famous race sees hundreds of male and female competitors tumble down the steep hill in Brockworth every year in pursuit of a wheel of Double Gloucester cheese. The winner walks away with the wheel of cheese.

The 2024 winner of the first men’s downhill race was Tom Kopke, a 22-year-old man from Munich, Germany. Following his win, he said: “I am absolutely buzzing, it was an amazing experience. The unfortunate thing is I can’t really remember anything about it.

“I just started and went for the bottom, and that was it. Everyone said rolling is the best strategy but I just football slid downhill, just sliding, and get back on your feet as quickly as possible.

“I love this event and it’s just crazy. The day before I went cliff diving and I am all for these crazy events. I promised my grandma I am going to give it to her, so she is going to get the cheese.”

A total of six races take place on the day, with separate races for men, women and children. 25-year-old Australian Dylan Twiss won the second men’s race, while 23-year-old Abby Lampe, from North Carolina in the US, won the women’s race.

She said: “I just remember rolling down and my face getting beat up again. I was thinking to myself there was only going to be a few seconds and I would get to the bottom at some point and it will be over. I found about cheese rolling years ago on the internet and I wanted to defend my title.

“I don’t know how it looks – only how it feels – but I think I just tumbled down. I came out unscathed. My face is a little dirty but that’s about it. I’m going to ship the cheese back home to North Carolina.”