Best divers in the world jump from the Old Bridge into the Neretva

The Old Bridge in Mostar has hosted numerous diving competitions, but this year, on August 15, the Mostar gem will host the world's best divers of the Red Bull Cliff Diving World Championship, reports the Bosnian news agency Patria.

August leads elite world divers to a new location, namely Mostar, where the tradition of bridge diving competitions dates far back into the past.

The Old Bridge, after its reconstruction in 2004, was opened precisely with a diving show, and this year it will for the first time be the stage of a World Championship competition.

Built in the 16th century, the iconic Old Bridge gracefully rises above the emerald waters of the Neretva River, connecting two parts of the Old Town in Mostar. Surrounded by fortified towers on both sides, it blends seamlessly into the surroundings, creating an impressive sight. This single-arch stone bridge looks different from different perspectives.

Its builder was Mimar Hajrudin, a student of the great Ottoman architect Mimar Sinan. Legend has it that the builder never saw the completed bridge, as he left before the scaffolding was removed, lacking the strength to see whether the bridge would stand. Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent threatened him with beheading if the bridge fell. The bridge, along with the surrounding part of the Old Town in Mostar, is on the UNESCO World Heritage List and is often cited as one of the most beautiful bridges in the world.

The Old Bridge is the stage where young men of Mostar prove their courage in a kind of rite of passage, and the tradition of diving from this bridge is 450 years old. As old as the bridge itself, the iconic image of a diver soaring through the air from the bridge into the icy and swift waters of the Neretva, from a height of 27 meters, is equally iconic.