Jump4Heroes leader leaps at Extreme World Championships
08 June 2010
Our indefatigable Jump4Heroes, The Royal British Legion's Extreme Human Flight Team, are off again…
The team leader of J4H will leap from a 600ft building this weekend in a bid to be crowned BASE jumping's Extreme World Champion. Jumping with his canopy emblazoned with the Legion's 'Poppy' logo, Major Alastair Macartney will join 24 others travelling to Spain to BASE jump from the highest hotel in Europe, the Gran Hotel Bali in Benidorm on 11-14 June.
Competitors in the death defying Extreme World Championships will be marked on the precise timing of their freefall 'delay', the heading direction of the opening of their canopy and their accuracy in landing on the target - in between the hotel's swimming pools.
Maj Alastair Macartney, 34, is an experienced international parachuting competitor and will be fighting hard for this title over the four-day competition. He has 'form': along with J4H team member Cpl Deane 'Smudge' Smith, they set a new world record last year for the most BASE jumps in a 24hr period, jumping from the 1,000ft Menara Tower in Kuala Lumpur.
"This is calculated risk taking in an extreme environment. Everyone will be going out there to win. I'll be doing my best and hope that, at the end of the day, I'll be standing on the podium draped in The Royal British Legion flag," said Maj Macartney.
"I've trained pretty hard and will be entirely focussed on the task in hand while leaping from the hotel. But really I'm doing this to raise awareness for The Royal British Legion and the fantastic work they do for our Troops. At the end of the day, leaping from a building is pretty crazy but, in terms of bravery, it's nothing compared with the amazing work the guys are doing in Afghanistan right now."
Cpl Deane 'Smudge' Smith was also planning to compete but has had to withdraw due to Army commitments.
Media information:
Susan Cottam, PR Officer, The Royal British Legion
T: +44(0)20 3207 2477 M: 07775 017 889 E: scottam@britishlegion.org.uk
