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Orlando DUQUE
Sport High Diving
NOC Colombia   
GenderMen
Born11 Sep 1974 in Cali, COL
Height1.70 m
 Human Interest 
General Interest
Milestones
He won Colombia's first medal at an aquatics world championships when he won the inaugural high diving competition at the 2013 World Championships in Barcelona, Spain. (SportsDeskOnline, 31 Jul 2013)
Sport Specific Information
Training Regime
He trains five to six days a week to prepare for each season, mixing in running with gym workouts that focus on building strength rather than bulk.
Further Personal Information
Residence
Cali, COL
General Interest
Injuries
In 2018 he sustained a calf injury. (elcolombiano.com, 09 Nov 2018)

He sustained an ankle injury in 2017. (elcolombiano.com, 09 Nov 2018)

He suffered a leg injury during a dive in 2016. (elheraldo.co, 13 Jun 2017)

He injured his tibia [shinbone] in a paragliding accident in 2011. (behindmagazine.com, 11 Oct 2011)

In 2002 he broke his coccyx [tailbone]. (redbull.co, 2012)

He broke his wrist in 1992. (redbull.co, 2012)

A serious toe injury has troubled him throughout his career and has required three surgeries. (soyperiodista.com, 14 May 2013)
Sport Specific Information
Why this sport?
"I was just looking for some work at a dive show in a Safari Park in Austria in 1997. I saw the Red Bull Cliff Diving World Championships on TV and thought I could do that. I started training and then in 1999 I got my invitation to an event, and finished second."
When and where did you begin this sport?
He began diving at age 10 and high diving in 1997. After playing football he used to watch the divers at the Hernando Botero O'byrne swimming complex in Cali and one day one of the coaches invited him and his friends to try the sport.
General Interest
Nicknames
The Duke (redbull.com, 2012)
Sporting philosophy / motto
"My rivals are water and altitude, and I work hard every day to beat them." (deportivocali.co, 07 May 2013)
Other information
RETIREMENT
He announced his retirement from the sport in September 2019. "I believe it's time for my body to rest. I am quite happy to leave in a very good moment for the sport and I'll be very happy to be on the 'other side' of the discipline, helping to the development of high diving.” (fina.org, 24 Jul 2019; redbull.com, 11 Sep 2019)

ATHLETE REPRESENTATIVE
In September 2017 he was appointed to the International Swimming Federation [FINA] Athletes Committee. He was also appointed to the FINA Technical High Diving Committee. (fina.org, 20 Sep 2017)

ICEBERG JUMP
He travelled to Antarctica with the Colombian navy in order to jump from an iceberg in March 2018. "My sport has two parts: competition and adventure. I have always liked to dive in different places. A friend of mine and I wanted to dive in a new place for us and we decided to do it off an iceberg. That was the motivation, a different place and I realised that the only continent I hadn't dived in was Antarctica so I completed the challenge of diving all of over the world." (Agencia EFE YouTube channel, 10 Mar 2018; elpais.com.co, 17 Nov 2018)

TV APPEARANCE
He has appeared on the entertainment show 'Dancing with the Stars' in Colombia. (redbullcliffdiving.com, 17 Feb 2016)

FILM
He was featured in the film '9 Dives', in which he jumped off a bridge in Italy from a height of 34 metres. (redbull.com, 2012)

CHARITY
He is an ambassador for 'Alas para Volar' [Wings to Fly], a charity that helps injured children. (elcolombiano.com, 26 May 2013; Instagram profile, 10 Jul 2015)
Other sports
He competed in diving prior to his switch to high diving. (redbullcliffdiving.com, 18 Jul 2015)
Ambitions
To promote the inclusion of high diving in the Olympic Games. (elespectador.com, 19 Feb 2017)
Awards and honours
He was named the International Swimming Federation [FINA] Male High Diver of the Year in 2013 and 2014. (insidethegames.biz, 06 Jan 2014; swimswam.com, 01 Dec 2014)
Further Personal Information
Languages
English, Spanish
Family
Wife Catalina

 Competition Highlights
There are no major results available for this athlete.