Base jump from Burj Khalifa Dubai

Don't look down: Sky diver sets new world record after base jumping 2,205ft from top of Burj Khalifa in Dubai

By Mail Foreign Service
Last updated at 5:23 PM on 08th January 2010

An expert sky diver from the United Arab Emirates has set a new world record for base jumping from the top of the Burj Khalifa.
Nasr Al Niyadi and his trainer Omar Al Hegelan made a perfect landing after jumping 2,205ft from the 160th floor of the world's tallest building in Dubai on Tuesday.
The pair, from the Emirates Aviation Society, made the descent at speeds up to 137mph in under one and a half minutes.
Scroll down to see video

Brave: Omar Al Hegelan does a somersault thousands of feet up after following his colleague Nasr Al Niyadi from the 160th floor of the building

Look away now if you're afraid of heights: This image is taken as Al Niyadi hurtles head first through the air down the side of the building. The lights on the side of the building are below him

Mr Al Niyadi, who was one of 15 base jumpers to set the previous world record for base jumping off the Petronas Towers in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, described the feat as 'the best experience ever'
'When we were at the top of the building I was thinking "this is crazy",' he told gulfnews.com.
'I was a little nervous but I wanted to jump from the highest tower in the world to record an achievement for my family and for my country.
'As soon as we reached the ground I looked up and just thought "wow". I have completed over 2,700 jumps but this was the most amazing.'

Three, two, one... Al Niyadi throws himself from the basket dangling out in the air at the top of the building. The ground is half a mile beneath him

Safely down: Mr Al Hegelan parachutes the final few feet to the ground in Burj Park Island after a 90 second descent from the skyscraper

Base jumping refers to the four categories of fixed objects from which people taking part jump - buildings, antennas, bridges or spans and cliffs or earth.
Mr Al Niyadi and Mr Al Hegelan, both members of the Fazza Sky Team, landed safely at Burj Park Island after a breathtaking 10 second freefall and 80 second parachute flight.
Mr Al Niyadi, a father-of-five, was greeted by his children as he touched down. His youngest son, who is 14, is currently training to be a parachutist.
He said: 'They all want to do what I am doing and the youngest is even getting trained to jump with parachutes.
'I received skydiving training in Italy, Spain, France and Germany. It is an adventurous sport, but to me it is a hobby.'

Achievement: The expert sky divers celebrate with supporters after completing the world record jump on Tuesday. They have also sky dived from 29,500ft above Mount Everest

Ahmad Al Matroushi, managing director of UAE of Emaar Properties which built the Burj Khalifa, said: 'The base jump undertaken by the UAE national and his trainer is another human achievement that complements Burj Khalifa's accomplished track-record of pushing frontiers.'
Both skydivers were part of a Fazza Sky Team expedition which made a world record sky dive over Mount Everest at 29,500ft in 2008.
Mr Al Niyadi, who began freefly jumping in 2002, was the Accuracy Sky Diving UAE national champion in 2007 and has done more than 2,700 sky dives.
It comes after a workman recorded a dizzying video from the very top of the 2,716ft skyscraper.
The video, taken from what appears to be a maintenance hatch, pans around the centre of Dubai and shows a view looking right down the vertical face of the building.
See the base jump video here - and below, the video of the view from the top

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/worldnews/article-1241637/Sky-diver-set-new-world-record-base-jumping-2-205ft-Burj-Khalifa-Dubai.html#ixzz0c5569cMv