An Israeli TikTok star who gained popularity for posting videos mocking his own obesity has died suddenly died aged 28, according to reports. Idan Ohayon, an Israeli TikTok user with more than 140,000 followers, died of unknown medical conditions on Tuesday evening at the Barzilai Medical Center in the Israeli coastal city of Ashkelon.
Ohayon's family just stated that a medical ailment was the cause of his death, without going into greater details about his death. The Israeli TikTok star shot to fame by posting videos of himself eating food and making fun of his own weight, which earned him millions of fans across the world.
The Smile Stops
Ohayon's death was confirmed by the agency that represented him, ADD Content, who described him as "golden-hearted" in a statement on Instagram on Wednesday. "[We are] sorry for the family and are deeply hurt by the death of Idan, who was a talented, hardworking and golden-hearted guy," the agency wrote alongside a photograph of Ohayon.
His funeral was set for Wednesday, the Sun reported, and his family has confirmed that the cause of death was a medical ailment that has not yet been disclosed.
A source also claims that Ohayon, who gained stardom making fun of his own weight, had received a role in the influencer-focused competition reality series "The Creatoks."
He was going to compete on the show against other influencers for the title of best content creator in Israel. He is survived by his mother, brother and sister.
Gone too Soon
Ohayan's massive following on TikTok, as well as his 52,000 followers on Instagram and thousands of subscribers on YouTube, made him a well-known influencer in Israel.
Ohayon claimed to have taken a sabbatical from social media a few months back, he told Israeli media. However, when he returned, he posted a number of videos on TikTok and ended up gaining thousands of followers more. "One day, I decided to return to social media, so I updated a video on Tiktok," Ohayon told Ynet.
"Suddenly, I reached 300,000 views in 24 hours, so I posted another video and another one, and views kept coming. I returned to my old life and gained a lot of followers and it was cool. People even recognized me when I was walking on the street and asked for selfies," he added.
The influencer's 140,000 TikTok fans paid tribute to him and expressed their "devastation" at his death. "My heart is torn to pieces, such a young man. May his memory be blessed," one fan wrote on Tiktok.
"We will always remember him as a guy with a joyful life," one fan wrote in a tribute - which along with the others have been translated from Hebrew into English.
Another fan wrote on Ohayon's Instagram page: "I've known you since you started with the network, I'll miss you dear friend."
