You may not know Melissa Sander's name, but you probably know her as the Grape Stomper, the Grape Lady, or the Grape Lady Epic Fall Girl. Those names are in reference to a viral video that first appeared on YouTube in January of 2006 and became one of the most famous "fails" caught on camera. The original clip aired on the WAGA-TV local news station in Atlanta, Georgia, and it shows Sander challenging another woman to a grape-stomping contest. Sander stops the race, but then decides to get a few extra stomps in after the contest is over. In true "cheaters never win" fashion, she loses her balance and falls face-first into the ground.
There is something about her fall that is just extraordinary, and has led to this video being burned into the minds of millions of people. It may be the arrogance before the fall, the way she landed, or most likely the yells of pain afterwards that made this one of the first viral videos ever. The "ouch, ouch, ouch" was awkward, but the true ridiculousness of the clip comes when her colleagues in the studio can only muster up a "youch" for their fallen friend while holding back laughter.
You're a cruel people, talk show hosts.
So What Happened To Her?
The internet-at-large tried to track Sander down for many years, and in 2008 she finally made a public appearance regarding the video. During an interview on a syndicated radio program called Totally Real Exposé, she talked about the epic fall. When asked about her thoughts on the incident, she had this to say:
Am I embarrassed that I fell? Of course. I also broke a couple ribs, thanks for asking. I had to spend a few weeks in the hospital under observation. I suffered quite a bit for an honest mistake, a momentary lapse in concentration, and now I’m trying to move on.
Ouch was right. We're sorry to hear it was such a bad fall, and we wish you good luck in the future Ms. Sander.
Check out the video below.
