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Keir Starmer Stumbles Entering G20 Business Meeting but Quickly Recovers

At the G20 summit in Johannesburg on Nov. 21, U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer briefly stumbled while entering a meeting with international business leaders but recovered immediately and continued greeting attendees. The summit closed on Nov. 23 with South African President Cyril Ramaphosa performing the customary handover; the U.S. will take the rotating presidency in 2026. President Donald Trump boycotted this year's summit but later spoke with Starmer by phone about coalition support for Ukraine and a potential peace proposal.

03:36 AM, 11/24/2025Politics
Keir Starmer Stumbles Entering G20 Business Meeting but Quickly Recovers

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, 63, briefly stumbled and nearly fell as he entered a room to meet international business leaders during the G20 summit in Johannesburg on Friday, Nov. 21. Video of the moment shows him smiling and saying "hello" before tripping forward; he did not fall to the floor and recovered within seconds, immediately continuing to shake hands and greet attendees.

What happened

Footage of the incident captured audible gasps in the room, but Starmer recovered almost instantly and proceeded with his schedule as if nothing had happened. The short misstep had no obvious impact on his meetings or public engagements that weekend.

Summit close and wider context

The three-day summit concluded on Sunday, Nov. 23, when South African President Cyril Ramaphosa ended the conference by striking a gavel and performing the customary handover to the incoming G20 presidency. The United States is scheduled to assume the rotating presidency in 2026, and the U.S. president has suggested plans to hold a future meeting at his Florida club.

Boycott and diplomatic follow-up

President Donald Trump boycotted this year's summit amid his repeated and widely discredited claims about a so-called "white genocide" in South Africa. The South African government has consistently rejected those allegations, and President Ramaphosa emphasized that violence in the country is driven by criminality and affects people of all racial groups:

"There is criminality in our country. People who do get killed, unfortunately, through criminal activity are not only White people, [the] majority of them are Black people."

Despite his absence in Johannesburg, Trump spoke with Starmer by phone after the summit. Downing Street said Starmer relayed discussions from a coalition of countries pledging strengthened support for Ukraine, and that the two leaders had a "good and constructive" call in which Starmer agreed to engage with Trump's proposed peace plan for Ukraine.

Reaction

The brief stumble was widely shared on social media but drew little lasting attention beyond the viral clip; officials and attendees noted that Starmer's prompt recovery kept the incident from disrupting the summit's business.

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