Felix Baumgartner Keynote Speaker
- World record holder for skydiving an estimated 39km per
- First person to break the sound barrier without vehicular power
- Laureus World Action Sportsperson of the Year (2012)
Felix Baumgartner's Biography
Felix Baumgartner is an inspirational keynote speaker who shares his experience and insights about his world recording breaking skydiving, daredevil and BASE jumping experiences.
In 2012 Felix set the world record for skydiving an estimated 39 kilometres (24 miles), reaching an estimated speed of 1,357km/h, becoming the first person to break the sound barrier without vehicular power on his descent.
These achievements were part of Felix’s most recent project, Red Bull Stratos, in which he jumped to Earth from a helium balloon in the stratosphere on 14th October 2012. As part of this project, he set the altitude record for a manned balloon flight, parachute jump from the highest altitude, and greatest free fall velocity.
Felix is also renowned for the particularly perilous nature of the stunts he has performed during his career. In 2003, Felix became the first person to skydive across the English Channel using a specially made carbon fibre wing. Baumgartner also set the world record for the lowest BASE jump ever, when he jumped 29 metres from the hand of the Christ the Redeemer statue in Rio de Janeiro.
Felix began skydiving at the age of 16 and extended his skills as part of the Austrian military’s demonstration and competition team. In 1988, he began performing skydiving exhibitions for Red bull. The company’s out-of-the-box thinking and Felix’s adventurous spirit clicked and they’ve collaborated ever since, becoming today the world’s most known Red bull athlete.
More recently, Felix’s next big dream was to become a helicopter pilot. For more than a decade,Felix has been flying as a commercial helicopter pilot in Europe. He flies many kinds of helicopters, not just extreme flights, but also charity flights – he is training to become a rescue helicopter pilot, to save other people’s lives.
Felix is a prominent advocate for non profit Wings For Life Spinal Cord Research Foundation and he is currently developing his own personal humanitarian project, FLY 4 LIFE.
His other great passion is race car driving – he participated in some famous races, from Nurgburgring to Bathurst 24 hours race in Australia and many more.