Olympian to officiate PH leg of Red Bull Cliff Diving World Series 2019

MANILA, Philippines – Four-time Olympic gold medal diver Greg Louganis will continue to serve as sports director as the Red Bull Cliff Diving World Series stages a leg in the Philippines for the first time. 

The 11th season of the World Series will kick off on April 12 in the Small and Big Lagoons located in Miniloc Island in El Nido, Palawan. 

Officiating the Philippine leg is Louganis, who was tapped by Red Bull starting in 2017 after working as judge in the past editions of the World Series. 

“[A]fter the passing of my dear friend and former Olympic competitor Niki Stajkovic, who was the original sports director, Red Bull reached out to me and asked if I could step into the role,” Louganis said. 

As sports director, Louganis will oversee every athletic and logistical aspect of the competition to ensure all safety measures are met, including the implementation of consistent competition rules. 

The standard diving height for the men’s and women’s competitions are 27 and 21 meters, respectively, while there should be at least 5 meters of water depth. 

Louganis, who is widely considered the “greatest American diver,” collected 1 silver and 4 Olympic gold medals and 5 World Championship gold medals during his stellar career. 

After securing a silver in the platform event of the 1976 Olympics, he secured two Olympic gold medals 12 years later after ruling both and platform and springboard events. 

In the 1988 Olympics, Louganis suffered a concussion in the preliminary rounds but still went on to win gold medals in the springboard and platform events again. 

He is the only male and second diver in Olympic history to sweep the diving events in back-to-back Games. 

In the years since his Olympic wins, Louganis has established himself as a global icon for civil and LGBT rights. – Rappler.com