Moment Russian skydiver plunges to death at contest dedicated to Putin

Terrifying moment Russian skydiver plunges to his death at contest dedicated to Putin

• Daredevil skydiver Dmitry Belyayev was a member of the Russian national team

This is the terrifying moment a Russian skydiver plunged to his death at a contest dedicated to Vladimir Putin’s upcoming 71st birthday. 

Dmitry Belyayev, 45, was filmed swooping in at high speed from a height before hitting the water at a planned event in Gudermes, Chechnya.

The full video shows Belyayev spin across the surface of the water before going under the water.

Onlookers are seen rushing to help the daredevil skydiver, a member of the Russian national team, as his parachute starts to sink.

The Russian University of Special Forces has hosted several parachuting competitions dedicated to Putin’s birthday tomorrow.

Belyayev was a member of the Russian national team and had completed over 3,700 jumps

The Parachuting Federation of Russia issued a statement saying: ‘The tragedy occurred while piloting a high-speed parachute.

‘According to preliminary data, during his landing approach the parachutist made a mistake and did not calculate the height of the manoeuvre, as a result of which he collided with the water surface at an increased vertical speed.

‘There were rescue services on site, including a mobile disaster medicine unit.

‘Medical workers fought for Dmitry’s life from the first minutes of the collision, and resuscitation measures were carried out on the spot.

‘Doctors were unable to save the athlete’s life.’

The federation said ‘this is an irreparable loss for the entire parachute community’.

‘We express our condolences to the family and loved ones of the deceased,’ it added.

Belyayev was from Pushkin, near St Petersburg, and had completed more than 3,700 jumps over the course of his career.

Canopy piloting – also known as swooping – is considered highly dangerous and involves a skydiver performing aerial feats above a body of water.

The parachuter is tested for speed, distance and accuracy.

Onlookers rushed to help after Belyayev’s misjudged landing in the water

Russian President Vladimir Putin (pictured giving a speech on security and development in Sochi yesterday) will celebrate his 71st birthday tomorrow, October 6

In 2019, a skydiver died in Russia after falling 2,625ft during a routine training jump.

35-year-old Mikhail Prokhorov, a paramedic, died on the spot as he hit the ground after both of his parachutes failed to open.

Prokhorov’s main parachute failed after he jumped from an Mi-8 helicopter.

The experienced jumper tried to open the reserve parachute but its straps became tangled in the main one.

His parachute lanyard then ‘caught on his neck’, according to several accounts.

His rescue team is based in Sverdlovsk region and deployed to aviation emergencies around Russia. 

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