Felix Baumgartner, the Austrian extreme skydiver famous for his record-breaking 2012 jump from the edge of space, has died in a paragliding accident in central Italy. He was 56.
Baumgartner lost control of his motorised paraglider while flying over Porto Sant'Elpidio in the Marche region on Thursday, falling into a hotel swimming pool. Several people were in the pool at the time, but no guests were injured. An employee suffered minor injuries.
Witness Mirella Ivanov described seeing the paraglider spin 'like a top' before crashing. The mayor of Porto Sant'Elpidio, Massimiliano Ciarpella, suggested Baumgartner may have suffered a sudden medical issue mid-air.
Baumgartner became a global icon in October 2012 when he jumped from a balloon 38km above Earth, becoming the first skydiver to break the sound barrier. He reached a peak speed of over 1,343km/h during his nine-minute descent over Roswell, New Mexico.
Known as 'Fearless Felix', he made thousands of daredevil jumps from landmarks worldwide, including the Christ the Redeemer statue in Rio de Janeiro. In recent years, he performed as a helicopter stunt pilot with the Flying Bulls.
Baumgartner also courted controversy with his political views, including support for dictatorship and opposition to climate action and LGBTQ+ rights. He divided his time between Switzerland and the US.
