Posted: 8 months ago

Women take on daredevil challenge as Ballycastle hosts Red Bull Cliff Diving World Series event this July

Antonina Vyshyvanova of the Ukraine dives from the 21 metre platform during the first competition day of the fourth stop of the Red Bull Cliff Diving World Series at Downpatrick Head, Ireland on September 11, 2021

FEMALE competitors will join their male counterparts as, for the very first time, Northern Ireland will host a leg of the Red Bull Cliff Diving World Series 2024 when the breathtaking global event heads to Ballycastle this July (19-20). With the event free to the public, the beautiful Causeway Coast will be the backdrop as the world’s best cliff divers battle it out on the fourth stop of the series.

Nestled within the Glens of Antrim, an area of outstanding natural beauty, the choppy Atlantic waters of Ballycastle will prove both a danger and a delight for those competing. A stone’s throw from the legendary Giant’s Causeway, this stop comes at the mid-season point of the series and divers will be expected to contend with challenging conditions that will push them to their absolute limit.

Free to the public, tens of thousands of people will be expected in Ballycastle to witness a spectacle like no other, with the competition getting underway at 4pm on both days. A roster of 24 male and female divers will have to face down fearsome winds, before diving and twisting through the air from heights of up to 27 meters, plunging into the cold Atlantic at over 85 kmph.

Cliff Diving fans will fondly remember previous stops of Red Bull’s iconic World Series on these shores. The famous Serpent’s Lair in Inis Mór was the venue when the 2017 series visited in 2017. Two years later, Dublin hosted the event for the first time with a record breaking attendance in Dún Laoghaire. Most recently, the series headed back West to the cliffs of Downpatrick Head on its last stop in Ireland in 2021.

In what is the 15th season of the Red Bull Cliff Diving World Series, all eyes will be on reigning champions Rhiannan Iffland (Australia) and Constantin Popovici (Romania), but there are sure to be plenty of thrills and spills throughout the season as the divers battle to claim the coveted King Kahekili Trophy.

The full calendar of the 2024 Red Bull Cliff Diving World Series is below:

  • Athens, GREECE – May 26th
  • Boston, USA – June 8th
  • Polignano a Mare, ITALY – June 30th
  • Ballycastle, NORTHERN IRELAND – July 19th & 20th
  • Oslo, NORWAY – August 10th
  • CANADA – August 25th
  • Antalya, TURKEY – September 29th
  • Sydney, AUSTRALIA – November 10th 

Further details on spectator attendance, live broadcast and participating divers will be announced in due course. To keep up to date with announcements, visit www.redbull.ie/cliffdiving or follow @redbullire on Instagram and TikTok.

Rhiannan Iffland of Australia dives from the 21 metre platform during the first stop of the Red Bull Cliff Diving World Series at the Serpent`s Lair, Inis Mor, Ireland on June 24, 2017
Jessica Macaulay of Canada dives from the 21 metre platform during the final competition day of the fourth stop of the Red Bull Cliff Diving World Series at Downpatrick Head, Ireland on September 12, 2021
Rhiannan Iffland of Australia dives from the 21 metre platform during the first stop of the Red Bull Cliff Diving World Series at the Serpent`s Lair, Inis Mor, Ireland on June 24, 2017