From cross country skiing to biathlon races, Norwegians are known for their love of winter sports. However, more and more Norwegians head for the high dive as the unusual sport of dødsing gains popularity.
Dødsing, or “death diving” in English, is a Norwegian extreme sport where competitors hurl themselves off a 10-meter-high diving platform and land in what looks like a giant belly flop. Sound intense? It is, and most definitely not for the faint hearted.
The sport originated in the 1960s at the famous Frognerbadet pool complex in Oslo, Norway, where the first ever dødsing championship later took place in 2008.
The goal is for divers to extend their arms and legs for as long as possible on the way down, creating a star shape with their body. Then at the last second before hitting the water, divers curl into a semi-circle to prevent injuries—and hopefully create the highest splash possible. Divers can also compete in freestyle death diving which also incorporates radical, acrobatic tricks before hitting the water. Competitors are judged on running speed off the platform, height and strength of leap, acrobatics and difficulty, how long the pose is kept for before touchdown, touchdown style and height of splash.
The 2018 Dødsing World Championship took place in Oslo on August 31 where thousands of spectators filled the grandstands and nearly 100 divers competed for the title.
Watch here as this year’s champion, Norwegian Emil Lybekk, takes home the crown after performing a twisting, horizontal corkscrew jump.