In a horrifying incident, a tiger attacked a circus trainer during a live show at a circus in the Italian province of Lecce on Thursday evening, according to a report in Metro.

Incidente al Circo per #ivanorfei, attaccato alle spalle da una Tigre davanti ai bimbi del pubblico
Ricoverato in codice rosso#circo #Orfei pic.twitter.com/VgYDvuxkJT

— SALLY (@LaSamy65280885) December 31, 2022

A video of the incident shared on Twitter shows the circus trainer is handling a tiger when the second tiger suddenly pounces on him from behind.

As the young trainer, identified as Ivan Orfei, 31, yells in pain and struggles to free himself from the tiger, the beast bites him on his neck and leg.

Meanwhile, people in the audience are heard screaming in horror as they realise that the performance has gone horribly wrong.