The Russian Eagle

Russia’s Valery Rozov (53) is one of the grand masters of the dangerous game of high altitude BASE jumping and wingsuit proximity flying, having accomplished an unparalleled series of jumps and flights over the past fifteen years from some of the most iconic mountains on Earth. 

In 2009 Rozov became the first person to skydive into the crater of an active volcano, Mutnovsky on the Kamchatka peninsula in far eastern Russia. The following year, he led an expedition to Antarctica’s Queen Maud Land and jumped from the spire of Ulvetanna Peak, also known as The Wolf’s Tooth. In 2012 he flew his wingsuit from Shivling (6540m) in the Indian Himalaya, and in 2013 he set a new world record for the highest BASE jump, finding an exit point [BASE jumping terminology for the location from which the jump is made] at 7220m above sea level on Changtse in the Everest massif. He’s since broken this record with a jump from 7,700 metres on Cho Oyu in Nepal’s Solukhumbu region in 2016: the highest BASE jump so far recorded. 

Rozov has made other BASE jumps from Cerro Torre and Torres del Pain in Patagonia, Kilimanjaro in Tanzania, Mount Elbrus and Ushba in the Caucasus Mountains, the Grand Jorasses, Mont Blanc, the Petit Dru and the Matterhorn in the Alps, Amin Brakk in the Pakistan Karakoram, and Great Sail Peak on Baffin Island, Canada. He’s also flown a wingsuit across the Strait of Tartary that divides mainland Russia and Sakhalin island in Siberia’s far east. 

The following images show a small selection of Rozov's most significant BASE jumps and wingsuit flights.

After five days of preparation, Valery Rozov leapt from an altitude of 6725m off Huascaran in the Cordillera Blanca on July 12th, 2017. At 6768m, Huascaran is the highest mountain in Peru. Denis Klero / Red Bull 

Rozov makes a BASE jump from circa 4600 metres on Mont Blanc, just over two hundred metres below the summit. This is the highest exit point in western Europe. Thomas Senf / Red Bull

Rozov and his team approaching Mount Elbrus in the Caucasus. Thomas Senf / Red Bull

Rozov performs an inverted dive whilst flying his wingsuit across the Strait of Tartary that divides mainland Russia and Sakhalin island in Siberia’s far east. Predrag Vuckovic/Red Bull 

Rozov climbs out of the crater after he jumped out of a Russian MI-8 helicopter and landed inside the active Mutnovsky volcano on the Kamchatka peninsula in far eastern Russia. Joerg Mitter / Red Bull 

Rozov on the summit of Ulvetanna (The Wolf's Tooth) in Antarctica's Queen Maud Land prior to his successful wingsuit flight from the peak in 2010. Joerg Mitter / Red Bull

Rozov takes off from near the summit of Ulvetanna in 2010, with the frozen wilderness of Queen Maud Land stretching beyond the horizon in every direction. Joerg Mitter / Red Bull

Rozov jumars past a serac on Shivling in the Gangotri region of the Indian Himalaya on May 24th, 2012, prior to his BASE jump from the peak. Alexander Ruchkin/Red Bull 

Valery Rozov prepares for the jump on Shivling in the Indian Himalaya on May 25th, 2012. Viktor Volodin / Red Bull 

Rozov jumps from Shivling on May 25th, 2012. Viktor Volodin / Red Bull 

Rozov leaps from the 4690 metre peak of Ushba in the Caucasus region of Georgia on July 6, 2012: this was the first BASE jump from the mountain. Thomas Senf / Red Bull 

Rozov prepares for his Kilimanjaro BASE Jump in Tanzania on February 6th, 2015. Thomas Senf / Red Bull

Multiple exposure showing Valery Rozov flying from near the summit of Uhuru Peak, Kilimanjaro, Tanzania, on February 10th, 2015. Thomas Senf / Red Bull 

Rozov lands at circa 4200 metres among the giant groundsels after his successful BASE jump from Uhuru Peak, Kilimanjaro, Tanzania. Denis Klero / Red Bull

Rozov preparing at the exit point at 6725 meters near the summit of Huascaran, in Peru's Cordillera Blanca. After five days of preparation, Rozov leapt from near the summit of the highest mountain in Peru on July 12th, 2017. Denis Klero / Red Bull 

Valery Rozov celebrates after his jump off the north face of Mount Everest, China, on May 5th, 2013 - the first time a successful BASE jump was made on Everest. Denis Klero / Red Bull 

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You can find out more about Valery Rozov and his remarkable flying career on his Red Bull athlete page

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