Bungee jumping

Bungee jumping started as the coming-of-age ceremony in a small village on South Pentecost Island in Vanuatu. The youths jumped from the top of a 30 meter high tree to demonstrate their courage. They tied jungle vines around their ankles so that they would not hit the ground.

Inspired by the antics of the Oxford University Dangerous Sports Club, the first commercial bungee jumping set-up was opened on Kawarau Bridge in Queenstown, New Zealand on November 12, 1988. A group of 28 people — copying Vanuatu natives who ritualistically jumped from wooden platforms with vines tied to their ankles — took the plunge on the bungee jump's opening day.

At the age of 96 years and 222 days, South African Mohr Keet achieved the record for the oldest bungee jumper. The plunging pensioner jumped off the 216 meters (708 feet) high Bloukrans Bridge in South Africa on April 10, 2010. Keet was a retired farmer who said he decided to bungee jump because he wanted to "feel alive." 

Bungee jumper Ron Jones successfully dunked a doughnut into a cup of coffee at the bottom of a 198 foot jump in 2013.

In 2014, Australian daredevil Beau Retallick set a record of 158 bungee jumps in 24 hours.

The highest bungee jump with hands is 59.33 metres (194 ft 7 in), achieved by Beau Retallick at Kobaebashi Bridge, in Itsukimura, Kumamoto, Japan, on July 4, 2015. Retallick is a veteran bungee jumper with over 2,000 jumps to his name. He has jumped from some of the most iconic landmarks in the world, including the Eiffel Tower and the Sydney Harbour Bridge.

The jump from Kobaebashi Bridge was Retallick's most challenging yet. The bridge is located in a remote area of Japan, and the weather conditions on the day of the jump were not ideal. However, Retallick was determined to break the record, and he successfully completed the jump.

Bungee jumper Simon Berry from Sheffield, England broke the world record for the highest biscuit dunk on November 17, 2016. Berry bungee jumped 73.41 meters (240 ft 10 in)  before successfully dunking a chocolate hobnob into a mug of tea, bettering the previous record of 60.553 meters (198 ft 8 in) .

At 370.25 meters (1214 feet 8 inches) the bungee jump at the Balinghe Bridge in Huangguoshu, Guizhou, China, is the world’s highest commercial bungee jump faculty.