Sky diving is the name of one of the most beautiful and spectacular sports, skydiving. In the early days of skydiving, only the bravest dared to jump out of an airplane from a small, by modern standards, height.

For thrill-seekers of our days, a short flight with the opening of the dome at a great distance from the ground seems insufficiently extreme. Athletes tried to prolong the soaring as long as possible, performing various acrobatic exercises. So a new sport was born, competitions on which gather a huge number of spectators.

The beginning of the competition is no different from parachuting: the participants are loaded into the airplane, which lifts them to a given height and at a certain point leave the flying machine. From this moment skydiving begins: depending on the type of competition athletes perform individual or group exercises, gliding on a board. Everyone strives to open the dome as close to the ground as possible, this is one of the important characteristics of the skill of a sky diver.

The height of ascent depends on the time allotted for the exercises and the number of participants. For a 25-second flight of two skydivers, 2.5 kilometers is required, and for a mass formation consisting of more than a hundred athletes – at least five kilometers. In this case, the equipment includes additional devices for breathing, because the air is too rarefied.

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Skydiving is categorized into several areas:

  • Individual acrobatics.
  • Group acrobatics, when several participants in the air perform a series of exercises. Not only synchronization is taken into account, but also the location of the skydivers relative to each other. Spectators on the ground see a regular geometric figure, its tops are marked by the figures of athletes, who are getting closer, then again fly apart.
  • Freestyle – free movements, a kind of dance in weightlessness is especially effective when the participants perform it in pairs.
  • Skysurfing – a special board is attached to the legs of the athlete. From the outside it looks as if he performs exercises, hovering on a flying platform.
  • Double diving – the most difficult variety. After a free fall, you need to open the parachute, and 10-15 meters from the sea surface to unhook it and dive into the depths. At high altitude, a person must accurately orient himself to complete the flight in a safe place, otherwise you can fall into shallow water or rocks.

The speed of the fall depends on the height, the weight of the athlete, the peculiarities of his figure, and the position of the body. For example, when flying strictly vertically head-down, air resistance is minimal and at a height of up to five kilometers the skydiver approaches the ground at a speed of 80 m/s; if he takes a horizontal position, he can slow down to 50 m/s.