Watch: World first as diver jumps from West Cork's Dursey Island cable car

A Colombian high diver has become the first person in the world to dive off West Cork's Dursey Island cable car into the Atlantic.

Orlando Duque, 51, a world-famous cliff diver, said the 24m dive from the cable car was unlike anything he had ever faced before.

Suspended between the mainland and Dursey Island, the cable car is the only one in Europe which crosses open sea water.

First opened in 1969, the cable car once also carried livestock to and from the remote island and has served as a symbol of West Cork’s rugged character.

Mr Duque, a winner of nine Red Bull Cliff Diving World Series events and pioneer of modern cliff diving, said: “The cable car itself is so unique. To have the opportunity to dive from it was something special.

“I’ve jumped off a lot of things during my career, but a cable car is definitely a first for me.

“Dursey Island, and the whole area around, is very, very unique. It is such a beautiful area, but with the wind here, the currents, the changing tide — there were so many challenges.” 

Orlando Duque in West Cork. Picture: Inpho/Red Bull Content Pool/Szymon Lazewski

Unlike traditional cliff dives, Mr Duque’s challenge lay in the movement of the cable car itself. With no fixed platform and a constant swing amid strong and shifting winds, maintaining balance and generating the right take-off became part of the test.

“I’ve dived before in Ireland and there are some amazing cliffs in this country, but this was something else. The biggest difference is that you don’t have a stable base to take off from,” Mr Duque said.

“As soon as you push, you don’t have that solid feeling where you can control the dive. So, as soon as you leave the cable car you need to start solving problems, like building up speed. That was the main challenge.” 

 In preparation, Mr Duque trained at the state-of-the-art Fort Lauderdale Aquatic Centre in Florida, fine-tuning his form to adapt to the unusual dynamics of this jump. The 24m dive demanded absolute precision, with minimal margin for error as Mr Duque leapt from the swaying frame into the cold Atlantic water — a reminder of both the beauty and the danger that define the sport.

Cork County Council senior engineer Tim O’Herlihy, who supported Red Bull on the dive, added some local context. “The sea here can change very, very quickly. One day, it’s nice and calm — and the next, there’s 2m swells. It’s a very, very tough environment.”