Cliff diving World Championship yet to sink in for Aussie

Newly crowned world champion Rhiannan Iffland admits she's still pinching herself about what is truly a meteoric rise to the pinnacle of her sport.

The 25-year-old Aussie from Nords Wharf in the Hunter region of New South Wales, is still at a loss to explain how she went from wildcard entrant in the Red Bull Cliff Diving World Series, to championship winner in just under five months.

“I’ve asked myself the same question,” Iffland concedes.

Like many incredible journeys, Iffland’s was born out of adversity and a self-described horror showing at a competition in Abu Dhabi.

“I dived absolutely so badly and had a bit of a wipeout there,” Iffland admitted.

So when she was given a wildcard invitation to come and dive in Texas for the opening round of the World Series, it came as a massive shock for the 25-year-old.

“Dad told me, ‘you already did really badly in the last competition so you can only go up from there.’

“I went in with the attitude that I’ve got nothing to lose and I went out to have a good time.”

It worked because Iffland announced her arrival on the world stage with a stunning win on her Red Bull Cliff Diving debut.

“Winning that first event gave me extra motivation and a desire to want that feeling again.”

That desire bore Iffland fruit on the very next stop on her whirlwind tour, with another stunning performance in Portugal making it back-to-back wins.

“That’s when I realised I could do really well in this competition,” Iffland said.

But it wasn’t until destination number five in Bosnia Herzegovina, that Iffland truly grasped that she had a championship lead to hang onto.

“In Bosnia when I placed third, that’s when I woke up and realised that I was actually fighting for the title,” Iffland explains.

She would go on to claim the next event in Japan, before sealing the championship with victory in the UAE to make it an extraordinary five wins and two podium finishes, in seven events.

The unbelievable achievement is sure to open doors for Iffland in terms of recognition and sponsorship, while exposing her sport to mainstream Australian media.

More importantly, it secures her place in next year’s World Series, which kicks off in June.

Although she holds out hope of one day seeing cliff diving become an Olympic event and potentially realising another sporting dream, Iffland says she has no plans to switch focus to the shorter forms of diving.

“I don’t want to say never, but I can’t see myself going back to 10-metre diving.”

“Of course it’s every athletes dream to compete in the Olympics, but sometimes it’s the passion and enjoyment of the sport that matters most.”

With a championship title in her first season and the opportunity to travel to exotic locations around the world, it’s little wonder Iffland is feeling pretty content with life.