BASE Jumping
Rozov makes first ever BASE jump from Kilimanjaro
Valery Rozov makes a historic wingsuit flight from Africa’s highest mountain.
Rozov launches from 5,460m
© Thomas Senf / Red Bull Content Pool
It's the highest freestanding mountain in the world and to date no one has BASE jumped from its slopes. Until now.
Step forward 50-year-old Russian legend Valery Rozov. The BASE and wingsuit flyer has just returned from Tanzania, Africa, having made a successful wingsuit flight off Kilimanjaro.
See the first footage below – then get the full story.
The Russian adventurer summited the highest point in Africa (5,895m) and then jumped from the top of the Western Breach Wall, (5,460m) the nearest most suitable exit point.
“I prepared for this jump for one year,” he told us shortly after making the jump, “so it's a special feeling when you're successful, as you can imagine. I'm very excited to have made it.”
Hiking past Kilimanjaro’s retreating glaciers
© Thomas Senf / Red Bull Content Pool
Victory is all the sweeter since it was far from guaranteed. “There's no other mountain around so it attracts clouds on the summit. The only window we had was early in the morning,” adds Rozov.
There was another technical issue: “The main problem in searching for the ideal jumping spot was that the wall was not vertical,” adds Rozov. “We spent a whole day looking for it. After missing the opportunity to jump, we spent the night in the crater of Kilimanjaro at 5,750 meters. The next day, it was too windy and cloudy, so we managed to jump only on the third day.”
On the summit of Africa’s highest mountain
© Thomas Senf / Red Bull Content Pool
But once everything fell into place, it was mission jump. Rozov travelled a horizontal distance of more than 3km landing back down at the popular Barranco Camp 3,950m after spending more than a minute in freefall.
“When I landed there were hundreds of people to meet me. The locals had heard what I was up to and were pretty impressed!”
A hero’s welcome greets Rozov on landing
© Thomas Senf / Red Bull Content Pool
The Kilimanjaro jump was one of many the Russian has made around the world. His most legendary recent feat was to BASE jump from Everest. In 2013 he leapt from Mt Changtse, 7,220m, a subsidiary peak off Mt Everest, successfully making the first wingsuit flight off the mountain.
