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 The BBC's Jessica Williams"Any mistake would have proved fatal"  real 28k  |
Daredevil jumps from Jesus
Quick way down: Ready ... |
It was like a scene from a James Bond film.
 The aura of the statue added an exceptional spiritual dimension  |
| Felix Baumgartner |
Then, just before dawn, he fired a cable from a crossbow over the right arm of the 30-metre statue and climbed up to the outstretched hand.
Steady ... |
Then, in freefall, he opened his parachute and steered over shantytowns to a car park where a getaway car was waiting.
"As I was standing on the hand ... looking into the rising sun I realised that I would never feel anything like this in my life again," said Austrian Felix Baumgartner after the leap.
Go! |
He trained on a crane for weeks at his Salzburg home before travelling to Brazil.
"It was the first time (for the Christ statue) and I think it's the last time. It's the lowest base jump in the world," said jump organiser Stefan Aufschnaiter.
"Normally you need 50 or 60 metres. It's extremely dangerous," he said.
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Base jumping facts |
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Acronym for Building, Antenna, Span, Earth |
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Involves parachuting off fixed structures or landmarks |
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Parachute only opened at last moment |
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Illegal in most countries |
A former mechanic and motocross driver, Mr Baumgartner took his jumping equipment through Brazilian customs by saying he was an archer travelling to a sports tournament.
In April, he jumped from the 452-metre Petronas Twin Towers in Kuala Lumpur, the tallest building in the world.
And in July he was sponsored to leap from the 137-metre Pirelli skyscraper in the centre of Milan.
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22 Nov 99 | UK |
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Base: The final frontier |
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