“Our sport is a real test of your
nerve. You have to be mentally strong
or you won’t even get on the end of the
platform. And you know you have to be
100% focused on your dive or you can
end up in hospital.
“The moments before the dive are
definitely the scariest and everyone has
doubts when they’re up there. If you’re
learning something new there are even
more doubts in your mind. You don’t have
a reference point of how it’s going to feel,
so you have to rely on your training and
take that leap of faith.
“And the impact is always very, very
powerful and very, very violent. If you get
it wrong your legs can be ripped apart in
opposite directions. I’ve seen careers end
like that.”
As for his own fear of heights, Hunt
is more comfortable at the top of the cliff
diving platform than on a hotel balcony.
“Normally, I am a little bit scared
of heights when there’s not water
underneath. Because I’m so used to
judging height and seeing how many
somersaults and twists I can do from that
height, I can’t help but imagine how it
would feel to somersault and jump off.
“So where there’s no water
underneath, it scares the life out of me.
“I really don’t feel at ease when
I’m on a high balcony. I normally stay
away from the edge. I’m scared that
something inside of me is going to jump.
fear, redemption & momentum
I’m constantly having to tell myself not to
jump.”
Hunt has won 25 of the 50 events
to have taken place over the past seven
years and his overall victory last year
brought him a fifth title. He has had his
low points too, however. In 2013, he not
only lost the World Series title but also
finished second to Orlando Duque in the
World Championships – the first time
the discipline had been included in the
official FINA competition.
“It was a real wake-up call because I’d
won quite a lot of competitions before but
this important one, the first ever Worlds,
I kind of threw it away on the last dive.
That was the first time we were getting
into the FINA competitions, and it was on
a very big stage. Lots of people watch the
Red Bull Cliff Diving World Series but the
World Championships has a nice ring to
it – the medals, being associated with the
10m divers and 3m divers. It was kind of
special.
“Ever since then I said to myself I’m
not getting any younger and I want to put
in as much work as I can while I still have
the possibility of improving. From my
results I think that shows. I’ve become a
lot more consistent and I’m still getting
stronger.”
Hunt has twin goals for this year –
to retain his title and regain his status as
performer of the dive with the highest
degree of difficulty.