Austrian extreme athlete Felix Baumgartner died while paragliding in Porto Sant’Elpidio (Italy). He lost control and fell into a swimming pool at a coastal resort.
During his eventful career, Felix Baumgartner has performed many extremely dangerous stunts. But he gained worldwide fame thanks to the Red Bull Stratos project. His goal was to break the sound barrier during free fall.
A giant helium balloon with a volume of 850,000 m³ was used for this purpose. On October 14, 2012, Baumgartner ascended to an altitude of 38,969 meters in the stratosphere, after which he made his jump.
During his free fall, Baumgartner reached a speed of 1,357.6 km/h, becoming the first person in history to break the sound barrier without the use of an engine. The event was broadcast live on YouTube and watched by over 8 million people.
Felix Baumgartner died on July 17, 2025, while paragliding off the coast of Italy. He became unwell during the flight, after which the aircraft began to lose altitude and crashed into the hotel pool. A woman who was swimming there received minor injuries.
The extreme athlete died on the spot — according to local media reports, his heart stopped while he was still in the air. Baumgartner was 56 years old.
According to CNN
