At nine in the evening of Thursday, hours after the initial practice extreme jumpers felt a rumble. For a moment they got scared as they looked at each other puzzled for the event, but then someone explained them that it was the everyday cannon shot, old tradition orchestrated a little less than a kilometer from the headquarters of the first stop of the Red Bull VI World Series of Cliff Diving.
Then continued on with it, the draw for the qualifying round of jumps, in which the face to face of the great duels on Saturday will be defined. There was a lot at stake, the fact of jumping first or not from the platform, with a slight advantage for the latter, because he will jump knowing what his opponents did.
Thus, the Mexican Jorge Ferzuli will be the first, while his compatriot Jonathan Paredes would be in charge of closing the stage. Between the two of them will be the other divers , who began the show about four in the afternoon on Friday.
Intense and annoying sun in their faces, plus random and always strong wind, tinged the evening, in which none of the divers showed their best weapons. Indeed, all focused on performing basic stunts, without a high degree of difficulty to win the most points and avoid the “big fish” of the tournament.
But competition is just that, rivalry, tension, effectiveness, failures, and we always have winners and losers. In this case who came off worse was Ferzuli, for tomorrow will face in the particular battle the reigning champion, Russian Artem Silchenko , sublime in his pirouette, a master class on precision and cleanness with a fine entry into the water.
Also Mexican Paredes, Czech Michal Navratil , American Steven LoBue and Briton Gary Hunt, members of the Top 5 of the day exhibited potential. Veteran Orlando Duque ran again his traditional flight and gave no clues as to the rest of his program, in fact , he is the only one who has repeated the same jump over and over again , in competition and training.
By contrast, the guests Edivaldo Keda Moura and Miguel García were hesitant, barely got height and had little control of their movements in the air, perhaps upset by the sway of strong air.
The truth is that after the first round of jumps everything is ready, and expectations grow per minute. In the reception area, some speak cautiously about the outcome of the fight, others openly opt for their own candidates, as Hunt and Silchenko , convinced that they can climb to the top of the podium.
The verdict will be today at the Castillo de los Tres Reyes del Morro , a scenario that has enchanted all divers , delighted with its colonial and modern image of the Malecon and Havana urban background , where today will somewhat get complicated with convoluted acrobatics.
Final standings of the qualifying round : 1 Artem Silchenko (Russia, 98.8 points) . . Two . Jonathan Paredes ( Mexico , 96.9 ) . Three . Michal Navratil (Czech Republic, 96.5) . April . Steven LoBue ( U.S. 96.5) . May . Gary Hunt (Britain, 91.2 ) . 6. Orlando Duque ( Colombia , 91.2 ) . 7. David Colturi (USA , 89.3) . 8. Andy Jones ( U.S., 81.7 ) . 9. Kolanus Kris (Poland, 81.7 ) . 10. Jucelino Junior (Brazil, 79.8 ) . 11. Blake Aldridge (Great Britain , 74.1 ) . 12. Miguel García (Colombia, 68.4) . 13. Edivaldo Keda Moura (Brazil, 63). 14. Jorge Ferzuli (Mexico, 51.3 ) .
Artem Silchenko (Russia), defending champion , was the best in the qualifying round.
PLATFORM ONCUBA
Orlando Duque is not any diver. He is 39 and has a fabulous collection of experiences in Cliff Diving, a sport to which he has been dedicated, full time, from 1997 to … death set them apart.
Yes, because “the Duke “already lives perennially in a platform 27 meters high. That is his natural habitat, suitable space, and when he decides not to jump anymore he will stay aboard a modality he embodies by being its most popular face, crown has been won thanks to his history of stunts, and his affable and kind personality.
OnCuba had the opportunity to bring the Colombian star to its platform to find out more about this mythical figure that he has forged over the years. Uninhibited as few, he speaks openly and in a hurry, smiling, happy after placing in the sixth seat of the qualifiers.
The leader takes out him eight points, but no doubt, after so many crowns and many jumps to the limit, if something he cannot have is questions. “Favorite tomorrow, me, just like that,” he says loudly , laughingly , a sound reaching the ears of his biggest rivals , Russian Artem Silchenko and Briton Gary Hunt , though they understand little or no Spanish .
That’s Orlando Duque, a Colombian , Latin American , smart, enterprising man , who despite his seniority never tires of learning , just enough to know that his greatest desire now is to increase the degree of difficulty of the jumps to go alongside the evolution of the sport.
– Back to the Caribbean…
– ” It’s great to be close to home , the temperature is perfect , there is only a little wind, but we can handle that . I had been here six months ago and the view is spectacular in Havana . Here you can walk to many places and you find beautiful things. I wanted to start the season here, with a little heat. “
– Havana makes you fall for her?
– ” I love going on the bus watching the city, cars are awesome, especially the oldest. In the short time that I’ve had I’ve driven some to have the experience. The diving site is great. I had seen pictures, but until one comes it doesn’t realize the magnitude, how beautiful is the view of Havana, an iconic and spectacular city, as Red Bull likes. “
– The wind, can kill?
– “The wind is tricky because when you try to concentrate on the jump all you think is about in the wind. You have to wait for it to stop, usually every 10 or 15 seconds, but sometimes it does not stop, but increases, then you lose a little concentration. Sure, the wind blows for all of us equally. “
– Finally, new jumps?
– “Tomorrow I would not risk, I would start consistently. It would be too great a risk to make new leaps now, with the wind problem, then I go with the same program last year, in the remaining six stops there will be time to show new performances. “
– Extreme diving as a lifestyle?
– “The sport is growing more and more. When people realize that we are competing they relate a little more to the cliff diving. That’s the idea, and adding children to be motivated to train because it is something that takes a while learning. “
– Cliff Diving and Olympism?
– “We are on the right track, but that is quite a long process. The sports for Rio de Janeiro 2016 and Tokyo 2020 are already determined, so that was not until the 2024 Games or more. At least since diving is an Olympic sport it would only include other modality. So far, we are with FINA (International Swimming Federation) and we have succeeded. The World of Barcelona last year was perfect and we expect this season also happens the same in the World Cup in Russia. “
– Scenarios that are not yet included?
– “Places in Colombia, Africa, where I will soon jump, and in Antarctica as well. “
– Cliff Diving Family…
– “Among us there is a lot of respect. We all know what we face and it is simply admirable the work of each. Every time someone is standing on the platform I’m paying attention, because I understand what risk you have up there. If someone is even making a mistake, then any of us will go to talk to him, to alert , because beyond competition, rivalry , someone will win or lose , we have to go swimming together , relaxed to have a beer. “
Last jump?
– “I am fortunate to take the sport up so far, to promote it, and to represent my country. Now I turn 40 years old and my plan is to jump to the FINA World of Guadalajara in 2017, that would be my last jump. “
Photos: Adriana Rodriguez Vives
