Bull rider Gonzalo Tortugal was injured in a freak accident as he attempting to get onto a horse in the northern Illinois suburb of Wadsworth on Sunday.

The 20-year-old from Mexico was reportedly with a group of friends at a horse barn on the property of Tony Ocampo’s Landscaping in Wadsworth when he saw a horse and asked if he could ride it.

When he attempted to get on, the horse unexpectedly bucked, sending Tortugal to the ground. As the horse came back down he landed on Tortugal’s torso.

Tortugal’s girlfriend, Angelica Gallejos said her boyfriend had been riding bulls since he was 15 years old and was very familiar with horses, adding that he loved animals.

Sadly, his love of animals led to his demise, as Tortugal was rushed to the Advocate Condell Medical Center in Libertville, where he underwent surgery, but did not survive.

Tortugal had been living with his sister in Waukegan.