Stupid Deaths: Greek Boxer

Death and his two skeleton judges welcome a shirtless boxer from ancient Greece into the afterlife. When Death guesses that he is the celebrated champion Theagenes of Thasos, the boxer begs him never to say that name, so Death gleefully keeps repeating it. The boxer explains that he lost to Theagenes in fight after fight while his rival became famous across Greece, and that after Theagenes died the people of Thasos raised a huge statue in his honour. Every night the boxer crept out to beat the statue with a stick, until one night he struck it so hard that it toppled over and crushed him. Death tries a boxing pun that his skeleton judges fail to appreciate, then waves the nameless contestant through to the afterlife.

According to Pausanias, the real statue of Theagenes that fell on his resentful rival was then put on trial for murder, found guilty and thrown into the sea, until the Delphic oracle ordered it brought back.