Action in the 2019 edition of the Red Bull Cliff Diving World Series. Dean Treml, Red Bull

EL NIDO, Palawan -- Some of the world's best cliff divers are in town, seeking a strong start to the 2025 edition of the Red Bull Cliff Diving World Series amidst the picturesque landscapes of El Nido.

The extreme sport is back in El Nido for the first time since 2019, when three women and five men put on a show worthy of the breath-taking venue.

Australia's Rhiannan Iffland took home top honors in the women's division in 2019, while Gary Hunt dominated in the men's side.

Both divers are back in El Nido for the opening leg of the 2025 series, which formally starts on Friday afternoon. 

For Iffland, she is seeking to extend her dominance in the competition, having won the Cliff Diving World Series eight consecutive times. 

Hunt, for his part, is looking to regain the crown that he last won in 2022. He is expected to be pushed to the limit by 2023 champion Constantin Popovici and Jonathan Paredes, who were his top competitors in 2019.

Meanwhile, the Canadian pair of Molly Carlson and Simone Leathead are also in El Nido, where they will try to knock off Iffland from her perch. Carlson has placed second in the past three editions of the contest.

The spotlight will also be on Filipino-Australian cliff diver Xantheia Pennisi, who placed third in 2023 before enduring a rough campaign in 2024 and is now hoping for a strong start in familiar territory.

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"Coming here again after four or five years, we know the location, we've been here before. I think just having it in my head, I can visualize a lot better because I know the cliffs that we're gonna dive off, the paths that we're on, and we know it's gonna be good weather," Pennisi said.

The full list of competitors is as follows:

Women's division: Kaylea Arnett, Molly Carlson, Meili Carpenter, Nelli Chukanivska, Elisa Cosetti, Rhiannan Iffland, Simone Leathead, Ginni van Katwijk, Iris Schmidbauer, Xantheira Pennisi, Maria Paula Quintero, and Ellie Smart

Men's division: Andrea Barnaba, Carlos Gimeno, James Lichtenstein, Yolotl Martinez, Constantin Popovici, Oleksiy Prygorov, Catalin Preda, Jonathan Paredes, Miguel Garcia, Gary Hunt, Nikita Fedotov, and Braden Rumpit

The divers took part in a draw on Thursday evening to determine the order for Friday's Round 1.

The 12 male divers will jump from a 27-meter platform, while the female divers jump from a 21-meter platform.

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