Acapulco cliff divers receive Guinness World Record for completing 5 million head-first dives

The famed Acapulco cliff divers were awarded a Guinness World Record this week for completing 5 cardinal headfirst dives from La Quebrada, the steep, rocky cliff that towers supra the Pacific Ocean.

Since 1934, La Quebrada’s divers person drawn planetary attraction for their perilous 35-meter (115-foot) dives into a watery inlet conscionable 7 meters (23 feet) wide and 4 meters (13 feet) deep.

The Guinness grant cements their bequest arsenic 1 of Mexico’s astir enduring taste and diversion traditions.

Celebrated Tuesday successful a ceremonial attended by section and national officials, the accomplishment besides underscores Acapulco’s resilience aft 2 devastating hurricanes wrong a year: the Category 5 Hurricane Otis connected Oct. 25, 2023 (the strongest ever to onslaught the area) and the Category 3 Hurricane John connected Sept. 24, 2024.

Gustavo Gatica Gorostieta, president of the Professional Divers Association of La Quebrada, emphasized the 9 decades of sacrifice down the milestone.

“This grounds is the effect of tears, sweat, symptom and fear,” helium said. “We bash it with emotion and dedication to beforehand La Quebrada, Acapulco and Guerrero.”

Acapulco is the largest metropolis successful the authorities of Guerrero, with a colonisation of 658,000.

Situated a abbreviated locomotion oregon taxi thrust from downtown, the cliffs of La Quebrada are conscionable northwest of Acapulco’s main quadrate — not adjacent to immoderate beach, but rising 35 to 45 meters (115 to 148 feet) supra the water below. The Hotel El Mirador overlooks the cliffs, with panoramic views of the diving shows.

The historical 5 millionth dive was executed by Amadeo Alcocer, who began practicing the athletics astatine property 12 and is present a nonrecreational diver astatine 18. Wearing a ceremonial cape emblazoned with the Guinness logo, Alcocer described the infinitesimal arsenic nerve-wracking yet exhilarating.

“It makes maine consciousness precise happy, precise arrogant to beryllium portion of the radical and to beryllium from Acapulco,” helium said, mentioning that helium said a supplication to the Virgin of Guadalupe (Virgin Mary) moments earlier the plunge.

Divers tin scope speeds of 90 km/h (56 mph) during their 4-second descent.

Guerrero Gov. Evelyn Salgado hailed the divers’ “resilience and talent” arsenic emblematic of Acapulco’s betterment from Hurricanes Otis and John.

Divers and authorities officials celebrated the grounds astatine a ceremonial connected Tuesday. (Evelyn Salgado Pineda/Facebook)

Hurricane Otis forced a six-week halt to performances successful precocious 2023, with divers aboriginal scaling backmost shows owed to reduced tourism. Moreover, the accumulation of debris on the seashore aft some hurricanes besides made the waters unsafe for boaters and divers alike.

Federal Tourism Secretary Josefina Rodríguez Zamora praised the divers arsenic “the champion successful the world” and highlighted the Guinness grounds arsenic publicity that tin assistance revive Acapulco’s tourism sector.

Guinness typical Ingrid Rodríguez Borja noted the unsocial quality and trouble of the dives, which are performed astatine triple the tallness of Olympic platforms into shallower depths. Divers besides indispensable hold for the close tide earlier taking their plunge, and beardown winds are often portion of the equation.

The ceremonial featured 12 dives, including 1 by a pistillate and 2 by minors.

Over the past 91 years, since fishermen began challenging 1 different to leap from the crags into the h2o below, La Quebrada’s cliffs person hosted galore celebrities and been a tract successful galore Hollywood films, including Elvis Presley making a melodramatic dive successful 1963’s “Fun successful Acapulco.”

But nowadays, Salgado said, the absorption is chiefly connected preserving Acapulco’s identity. “This isn’t conscionable sport,” Salgado said. “It’s a communicative of overcoming, of a radical who emergence again.”

By the mid-1930s, cliff diving had go a fashionable pastime among young thrill-seekers successful Acapulco. (Comisión Mexicana de Filmaciones/CC BY-SA 2.0)

Two cliff divers astatine La Quebrada — which means “the gulch” oregon “the ravine” — had already entered the Guinness grounds publication successful erstwhile years.

One of them is Raúl Arturo García Bravo, a high-dive pioneer and large promoter of La Quebrada diving successful the 1930s who, fable arsenic it, was the stunt antheral for Elvis’ large dive successful “Fun successful Acapulco.” He besides jumped from the Golden Gate Bridge successful San Francisco and appeared successful astatine slightest 10 different Hollywood films; his grounds of much than 35,000 precocious dives included his past from La Quebrada astatine property 71 successful 1998.

The different is Iris Selene Álvarez Alonso, who was 14 erstwhile she achieved a Guinness grounds successful 2007 by jumping into the water beneath from a cliff 18 meters (59 feet) high, making her the youngest pistillate to execute specified a feat. A enarthrosis wounded forced her to terminate her diving career.

With reports from La Jornada, Aristegui Noticias and EFE