A 101-year-old skydiver became the world’s oldest person to take such a dive Saturday after he jumped from an airplane 15,000 feet in the air over Devon, England.
Verdun Hayes, a World War II veteran, might be 101 years and 37 days old, but that didn’t stop him from taking the plunge that even a person decades younger than him would find terrifying.
Up until Saturday, Canadian Armand Gendreau held the record as the oldest person to skydive, according to CNN. Gendreau was 101 and 3 days old when he completed a jump from 10,000 feet above the ground back in June 2013.
Hayes, who said he first got the urge to skydive when he was 90, crushed that record over the weekend.
“He’d wanted to do it for many years and his wife wouldn’t let him,” Ian Honnor, Hayes’ grandson-in-law, told CNN. “He would class himself as a bit of a daredevil. He did a gliding session when he was 90, but he’s never done anything of this nature."
Hayes’ wife passed away since then, and he took his first skydive last year to celebrate his 100th birthday.
“Last year’s skydive was an amazing experience,” Hayes said in a statement. “I must have got a bit of a taste for it, because it just made me want to do it again.”
Hayes feels the same way after his second time skydiving, telling BBC News that the experience was “beautiful” and that he would “do it again tomorrow” if he could.
“I would, truthfully. It’s lovely,” he added.
Hayes says he often gets asked about his tips for longevity.
“A lot of people ask me how I’ve lived so long,” Hayes told The Telegraph. “I’d say, ‘Just keep breathing!"
Saturday’s jump was a little more special than his first, considering this time Hayes was raising money for the Royal British Legion, a veterans support group. He also wasn’t alone this time around; at least eight members of his family jumped with him on Saturday.
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