Felix Baumgartner, the Austrian daredevil known for his record-breaking stunts, has tragically died in a paragliding accident in Italy. The 56-year-old extreme sports enthusiast was reportedly flying a motorized paraglider in the coastal town of Porto Sant’Elpidio when he fell ill and crashed into a hotel swimming pool. Baumgartner, who was most recognized for his 2012 stratosphere jump, died instantly in the accident.
The incident also resulted in injuries to a hotel employee who was hit by the glider. The employee was rushed to the hospital with neck injuries. Baumgartner had posted an Instagram story two hours before the crash, ominously captioned “too much wind.”
Baumgartner’s daring feats spanned a range of extreme sports, including parachuting, BASE jumping, and skydiving. In 1999, he set the world record for the highest parachute jump from a building, leaping from the 1,483-foot Petronas Towers in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. That same year, he set another record for the lowest BASE jump, launching himself from the 85-foot arm of the Christ the Redeemer statue in Rio de Janeiro.
In 2003, Baumgartner made history as the first person to skydive across the English Channel. He accomplished this feat with the aid of a custom-designed carbon fiber wing, jumping from a height of over six miles above Dover, England, and landing safely in Cap Blanc-Nez, France.
However, Baumgartner’s most renowned stunt was his 2012 jump from the stratosphere. He ascended 24 miles in a helium balloon before free-falling at a top speed of Mach 1.25 (843.6 mph), becoming the first person to break the sound barrier without a vehicle. He was in free-fall for four minutes and 19 seconds before deploying his parachute. The stunt, sponsored and documented by Red Bull, was watched by around 8 million people on YouTube and other platforms.
Social media users have been posting tributes to the fallen daredevil. One fan wrote, “Shocked by the news, RIP,” while another commented, “We will all miss you Felix.”