Stuntman Felix Baumgartner Dies in Paragliding Crash At 56

Authored by Elma Aksalic via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

Daredevil athlete Felix Baumgartner, best known for his record-breaking 2012 skydive from space, has died at 56 years old in a paragliding accident in Italy.

According to officials in the coastal city of Porto Sant’Elpidio, Baumgartner died on July 17 after crashing into the side of a swimming pool.

“Our community is deeply affected by the tragic disappearance of Felix Baumgartner, a figure of global prominence, a symbol of courage and passion for extreme flight,” the town’s mayor, Massimiliano Ciarpella, said in a statement.

The exact cause of the incident remains unknown; however, Ciarpella noted that a “fatal illness” prior to the crash could have led to the accident.

“Porto Sant’Elpidio stands with his family and loved ones in this moment of grief,” the statement continued.

“On behalf of the Municipal Administration and all citizens, I express my sincerest condolences for this irreparable loss.”

The Austrian native made international headlines on Oct. 14, 2012, when he jumped out of a capsule in the stratosphere, free-falling for 24 miles towards Earth.

The jump was sponsored by Red Bull, an Austrian-owned energy drink company, with Baumgartner breaking the sound barrier during the feat.

He reached speeds of up to 843 miles per hour before opening his parachute and landing safely on the ground in New Mexico.

In a statement, Red Bull paid tribute to Baumgartner, thanking him for being “unyielding,” while remembering him as a colleague and friend.

“You always sought out the greatest challenges and mastered them with sharp thinking, relentless precision and a good dose of courage,” the statement read.

“You delved deep into every project. No detail was too small, no risk too great—as long as you could calculate it.”

“We grew with you and you with us. We wouldn’t trade a single day we had together. You will stay with us as a colleague, a loyal companion, but most of all as a friend.”

Baumgartner, a former military parachutist, teamed up with Red Bull in 1988 and over the course of his career made thousands of jumps from bridges, planes, skyscrapers, and famed global landmarks.

He broke 14 world records, including the highest parachute jump from the Petronas Towers in 1999, flying across the English Channel in a carbon fiber wing in 2003, and the world’s lowest BASE jump from the Christ the Redeemer statue in Rio de Janeiro in 2011.