Rhiannan Iffland continued her remarkable winning record at the third stop of the 2021 Red Bull Cliff Diving World Series in Mostar, Bosnia & Herzegovina, extending her streak to 10 victories in a row across three seasons. In the men’s competition, Gary Hunt returned to the top of the podium for the first time this season, fending off the late challenge of Constantin Popovici to post his third win at Stari Most.
Already holding a 37-point lead over her closest challenger going into the final round, Iffland dispatched another precise dive into the Neretva River to not only secure a record-extending 10th win in a row; but also surpass her own record competition score.
Mexico’s Adriana Jimenez showed no signs of rust on her first appearance in over two years, executing one of the day’s best dives in the final round to earn a second-placed finish. Completing the women’s podium was Canada’s Jessica Macaulay in third place.
Hunt, without a win in 2021 coming into this stop, had spoken openly earlier in the week about the double threat posed this season by rivals Popovici and Catalin Preda. The two Romanians faltered in the rain on Friday however, and despite Popovici’s sensational final dive, for which he picked up two 10s, Hunt remained calm and composed at the end to claim a 40th World Series win, and his first as a Frenchman.
Joining Hunt and Popovici on the podium was Russian wildcard Nikita Fedotov, who served up a repeat of his debut here in 2017 to finish third.
Earlier in the week, the 25 men and women had honoured the centuries-old diving tradition here with a first-ever competitive dive directly from the Old Bridge, before moving to the more tried and tested man-made platforms for the remaining three rounds.
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