Friday’s second-round day of diving action kicked off as early as 8 am at Kinbane Castle.
The competition is one of the biggest events in extreme sports.
The women were first up, with relatively calm conditions in the cold water below, and murky, breezy skies above.
Each diver in the women’s category rapelled around 10-12 metres down the rocky cliff face to reach the diving launch spot.
Australia’s Rhiannan Iffland was the diver to beat, but could not be caught, as she extended her lead on the scoreboards after landing a spectacular Reverse Flying 1 Somersault in Tuck, her Required dive.
Iffland earned three 9.0s, a huge feat given the challenging conditions.
“That’s a really good start,” the defending World Series champion said after wrapping the second round.
“Sometimes the challenging conditions really bring out the best in you. And I was trying to remind myself of that, and I’m stoked. Nines across the board, that’s pretty good, a nice start. And hopefully I can continue rolling that into the next two rounds.”
Maria Paula Quintero continued to pile on the pressure, ripping her entry into the wild Atlantic.
Her Forward 2 Somersaults 1/2 Twist earned the Colombian diver two 7.5s and an 8.0 score, enough to secure a second place after two rounds of diving.
Red Bull Cliff Diving makes a splash in Ballycastle
Molly Carlson of Canada continued her quest for the Northern Ireland podium, picking up 58.50 points, just five and a half points behind her closest competition rival.
In the women’s Round 3 it was all change, as the divers arrived at Ballycastle Harbour to go all-in from the 21m platform.
A change in location didn’t shake up the competition rankings though, as Iffland continued to rise to the challenge, setting a seemingly unbeatable bar after picking up her third set of three 9.0 scores. Quintero continued on the same trajectory, finishing in second place thanks to another 100 point boost from her Forward 4 Somersaults 1/2 Twist with a DD of 4.0, and Carlson was on excellent form, finishing in third once again thanks to three 9.0 scores from the judges for a majestic Inward 3 Somersaults 1/2 Twist.
In the men’s competition, Mexico’s Jonathan Paredes continued his domination in the off-the-cliff rounds, maintaining his strong lead after throwing down a powerful Forward 2 Somersaults 1/2 Twist. His precise execution of the dive paid off as reigning World Series champion Popovici leapt up the scoresheets into third place after two rounds by throwing a higher DD of 3.5 in the mix, compared to Paredes’ 2.8.
In between the two powerhouses of cliff diving finished relative newcomer in second, wildcard Yolotl Martinez who picked up 81 points and a 7.0, 7.5 and 8.0 for his impressive Forward 3 Somersaults 1 1/2 Twists.
“It feels great. Leading the competition after too many downs,” remarked Paredes after the second round of diving had wrapped. “I think I’ve always been a bit comfortable with the cliffs, regarding the fact that I don’t like climbing… But once I’m there, I think I feel very comfortable and if you take a percentage of my dives from cliffs, all of them are pretty good. So I think it’s just the moment of enjoying the little moment and the little things.”
Round 3 saw a shift in gears in the men’s category in Ballycastle Harbour from the 27m platform as the big DD scores came into play.
Paty Valente of Brazil dives from the 21 metre platform during the second competition day of the fourth stop of the 2024 Red Bull Cliff Diving World Series at Ballycastle Harbour, Causeway Coast, Northern Ireland on July 19, 2024.
Aidan Heslop virtually flexed with his Back 4 Somersaults 3 Twists dive and a huge DD of 5.7, ultimately picking up two 9.0s and an 8.5, and clearly chasing down his second victory of the season.
The Brit finished Day 2 with 300.05 points, just over 35 points clear of second place Constantin Popovici, who remains a sizeable threat and in contention for the win. Meanwhile, James Lichtenstein, who currently leads the overall World Series rankings, fought his way into podium contention by finishing the day in third after a solid Armstand Back 4 1/2 Somersaults. His DD of 5.4 and three 8.0s scores from the judges moved the needle considerably, seeing the US diver improve his standing in the scoresheets from 8th to 3rd.