A heart-stopping video has captured the moment a Norwegian woman broke the world record for the highest female 'Death Dive.'
Asbjørg Nesje, 25, leapt from a staggering 102 feet at Abiqua Falls in Oregon in June.
Death diving, an extreme sport gaining popularity online, involves divers flinging themselves from great heights while maintaining a specific pose until the last possible second.
Nesje, a three-time world champion, held her exposed position until mere fractions of a second before impact.
She is also the first diver to ever attempt a jump from this location.
A heart-stopping video has captured the moment a Norwegian woman broke the world record for the highest female 'Death Dive'
Photographer Steven Donovan, who captured the breathtaking moment, described the intense emotions surrounding the jump.
In an Instagram video shared in July, Donovan wrote: 'So incredibly inspired and honored at what I got to witness and capture the other day. @asbjorg_n made history not only setting a record for highest female death dive but being the first person to ever death dive this iconic spot.'
'She did it with such beauty and grace in front of a huge group of some of the best freestyle cliff jumpers in the world. Standing up top with Asbjorg feeling her emotions and the fear involved with this jump was heavy.'
Donovan expressed how anxious he felt watching his friend take the leap, recalling 'a pit in his stomach' knowing how dangerous the stunt was.
'While I did everything I could to hype her up and reassure her that she's more than capable of pulling off this stunt there was still a pit in my stomach knowing just how dangerous this jump is and that final hug I gave my friend before she jumped could just be the last.'
'Watching her emerge from that ice cold water greeted by all our friends and hugging them one by one on the other side brought me to tears at the top having just witnessed a truly ground breaking feat in women's sports.'
Nesje replied, thanking her supporters and Donovan for the stunning shot.
'Your support on the top meant so much to me, as well as having the entire community cheering for me at the bottom,' she said. 'And thanks again for capturing it in the most epic way ever!!'
Asbjørg Nesje, 25, leapt from a staggering 102 feet at Abiqua Falls in Oregon in June
Death diving, an extreme sport gaining popularity online, involves divers flinging themselves from great heights while maintaining a specific pose until the last possible second
Originating in Norway in the 1970s, 'death diving' sees daredevils dive into water from platforms up to 80 feet in the air, often landing in a painful bellyflop to generate the most clicks.
The extreme sport went viral on TikTok last year, quickly becoming one of the most watched trends on the app sparking safety concerns among some users as competitors are seen leaping from massive heights.
Nesje, who regularly amasses millions of viewers as she hurls herself from huge heights, went viral in 2023 after a video of hers racked up over 40 million views as she performed a dive from an eye-watering 80-foot platform.
The daredevil was seen plummeting for several seconds before crashing into the depths below - sparking fears among some viewers for her safety.
'Did she live?' questioned on commenter. Another said: 'That looks painful...'
'OMG... Is she ok?' asked a worried viewer.
She is also the first diver to ever attempt a jump from this location. Photographer Steven Donovan captured the stunning video in an Instagram video shared in July
Fears over her safety led Nesje to later upload a further video of the jump from a different angle, reassuring her fans that she has 'never felt more alive.'
The Scandinavian sport, named dødsing, even has its own federation, with a set of guidelines, rankings and a world championship hosted in August every year since 2008.
For success in an official Dødsing Federation competition, judges mark dives based upon the three main criteria of run-up, flight and landing.
Nesje was victorious in both the 2021 and 2022 women's world championships, and she boasts a ranking of 33rd in the world.
Before her recent jump, the highest ever recorded death dive was performed by Emil Lybekk in 2019.
