Three-time world champion slackliner
Jaan Roose of Eestonia on Wednesday nearly broke another world
record by walking across the Messina Strait on a slackline
tightrope, but unfortunately fell shortly before the end of his
epic crossing and so the record could not be ratified.
The Red Bull athlete, 32, had set off from the Santa Trada Pier
in Villa San Giovanni on the Calabrian side of the strait,
harnessed at a height of 250 metres, on his way to a feat never
attempted before: the Messina Crossing, i.e. crossing the 3,600
metres of the Straits of Messina on a 1.9 centimetre wide ribbon
of rope.
Roose, who received a slushy 'granita', a Sicilian speciality,
upon his arrival, said he was "very happy with the feat".
However, his exploit cannot be registered in the Guinness World
Records book because he fell about 80 metres from the finishing
line, before getting back on the slackline and finishing the
crossing,
Even though the previous record was just 800 metres, Roose's
mammoth 3,600 metre mark cannot thus be ratified as the rules
say a crossing must be error-free.
The previous record set in the French Alps last September thus
stands.
Roose took over three hours to become the first man to tightrope
walk across the storied Strait.
The Estonian multiple world record holder is the first and only
athlete to perform a double backflip on a slackline.
His ability has also led to him performing as a stuntman in
Hollywood films, including Assassin's Creed, and appearing in
Madonna's MDNA World Tour.
As well as entering competitions, his website says, "Jaan loves
nothing more than travelling the world and showcasing his
incredible talent."
In 2021 he visited the capital of Bosnia and Herzegovina to
perform acrobatics at a height of 100m, while the following year
he tackled a 500m-long slackline between two mountains in
Kazakhstan.
Then in 2023, Roose completed a 150-metre walk on a slackline
across two points of a single building in Doha, Qatar.
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED © Copyright ANSA
