In front of 18,000 people Lake Macquarie’s Rhiannan Iffland was crowned the 2022 Red Bull Cliff Diving Series Champion for the first time on home soil.
Yesterday was the first time Red Bull had brought the event down under and it was the perfect day for it on Sydney Harbour.
The 31-year-old’s final dive scored 118.25 bringing her total to 387.75 to take out yesterday’s event and the series.
“This is my sixth title and its really, really extra special, I am genuinely speechless.
“I came in not knowing how I was going to cope with the nerves and not knowing exactly how i would feel up there but I put both dives for 9’s and that’s what it took,
“I knew that I was coming in and I was going to hold the King Kahekili trophy regardless of the result but I still had a job to do, I wanted to put on a really good show in front of the home crowd and I managed to pull it off so there’s another tick off the list. To be quite honest with you after the heli-dive here in the Harbour and after this event I think anything else that happens in my career now is a bonus and I’m really looking forward to finding different ways to keep challenging myself and to keep pushing myself so lets do it, lets go for next year already!
“2022 was a tough season with a lot of events. Kind of a roller coaster, emotionally trying to hold it all together, but all in all, if I look back now, it was one of the most enjoyable seasons.
“I think next year is going to be an interesting one!”
The Red Bull Cliff Diving World Series Final yesterday also saw Gary Hunt awarded the championship in the men’s category following a tight competition against Aiden Heslop. This is the tenth championship win for Hunt.
In its 13th year, Red Bull Cliff Diving World Series saw a purpose-built 27m and 21m platform built in the middle of Sydney Harbour for the first time.