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Chinese wedding guest knocked unconscious as ‘hazing’ game goes terribly wrong

Friend of bride says she remembers little of the event except the feeling of hands closing around her windpipe

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Chinese wedding ceremonies are steeped in tradition, but some people have called for outdated and sometimes dangerous rituals and games to be phased out. Photo: Getty

A wedding guest in northwestern China ended up in hospital on Saturday after being knocked unconscious during a traditional ritual in which the friends of the bride have to stop the groom and his men from getting into her room, according to a local media report.

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“I remember someone grabbing my neck and hair, and I just fell on the ground,” the woman, who was identified only by her surname Niu, was quoted as saying by news portal Cnwest.com.

“I don’t know exactly what happened.”

Niu is related to the bride and was attending the wedding in Xian, capital of Shaanxi province.

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She and a group of other women had been standing guard at the door to the bride’s room when the groomsmen arrived and tried to force their way inside, as is the tradition in Chinese wedding ceremonies, according to the report.

Niu’s younger sister was quoted as saying that she saw two men grab her sibling by the neck and throw her to the ground.

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