Hitting the water at 85kph per hour sounds down right deathly, but for the super athletes who partake in the Red Bull Cliff Diving championship, they make it look easy...almost. For the 50th Red Bull cliff diving event, the energy drink company, who champions every kind of extreme sport imaginable, headed to Bilbao in Northern Spain.
Along the picturesque Nervion River in downtown Bilbao, crowds gathered in front of the iconic Guggenheim Museum to catch a glimpse of perilous moments, where divers gracefully threw themselves off of platform towering high, around 26–28 m (85–92ft) far from the water.
Keeping with the Red Bull tradition, each diver seemed to defy gravity by demonstrating swift turns and tumbles. As their bodies contorted in midair before a panel of five high-dive judges, onlookers got as close as possible, paddling to the edge in kayaks and small boats.
Each competitor submits dive plans two days ahead of the event, so despite the fact these divers seem to ‘free-fall’, it’s an illusion: each movement is carefully coordinated and rehearsed to a ‘T’.
Professional high diver Gary Hunt, who achieved a combine score of 1320, claimed this year’s champion title. Trailing behind in second place with a score of 970 was Orlando Duque from Columbia, and Jonathan Parades from Mexico scoring 849 establishing his 3rd place. Hunt had already won six competitions prior to securing this World Series championship in Spain.
Below are some of the most thrilling images from the day’s event:
Scores of diving enthusiasts paddled out to watch the thrilling event
Video footage of the action packed day courtesy of Free Sport TV: