This is the Guardian.

Welcome to the Guardian Long Read, showcasing the best long-form journalism covering culture, politics and new thinking.

For the text version of this and all our long reads, go to thegardion.com forward slash long read.

No coach, no agent, no ego. The incredible story of the Lionel Messi of cliff diving by Zan Rice.

In early May 2009, 12 men arrived in La Rochelle on the west coast of France, carrying a few pairs of speedos in their luggage.

They had not come to swim, but as they liked to put it, to fly.

Their sport, which involves diving from cliffs, buildings or bridges, always comes with an atmosphere of nervous excitement, but this time the stakes were higher than ever before.

Cliff diving had long been at the obscure end of extreme sports, a pursuit for thrill seekers with day jobs.

Now, the energy drink company Red Bull was launching what it called a cliff diving world series, with eight events scheduled across the summer that would attract hundreds of thousands of spectators.

Here was a chance at fame, and if not fortune, for the very best of the divers, a modest living.

In traditional pool diving, the highest event is the 10 meter platform, and even Olympic divers can find the height unsettling.

In La Rochelle, the organizers heard a fixed a short platform to the ramparts of the medieval San Nicolas Tower, 26 meters above the frigid sea, as high as an eight-story building.

In their three seconds of flight, the divers would reach speeds of more than 50 miles per hour.

At that speed, a headfirst entry is too dangerous. They would need to break the water with their feet, trying to make as little splash as possible.

In each of their three competitive jumps, the divers could take off facing forwards, backwards, or most terrifyingly, from a handstand position.

As they fell, they would do as many twists and summer salts as they dared in order to impress the judges before hitting the sea.

Make a mistake, and it was like you'd run full speed into a wall, as the Colombian Orlando Duque, the favourite to win the new series, explained at the time.

The Duke, as he was known, was 34 charismatic and handsome, with a long ponytail that trailed behind him as he flew.

His main rivals were veteran high divers who'd come from as far as Australia, Russia, and the US.

There were a few novices too, including one from England.

Gary Hunt was 24 skinny and pale.

He was still so inexperienced from such heights that he wore two pairs of speedos for extra protection.

...