World champion diver goes down extreme water slide despite 'no women' sign

A diver once took it upon herself to ride down a slide which specifically had a 'no women' sign.

Rhiannan Iffland is an Australian professional diver who ran into an obstacle while visiting the Area 47 adventure park in Austria.

The 34-year-old is a five-time gold medal winner in women's High Diving at the World Aquatics Championships, while also being a seven-time consecutive Red Bull Cliff Diving World Series champion.

She's no small name in the sports world, but that didn't stop her from bending a rule or two while at the water park.

Iffland has dived from heights as high as 20 metres (66 feet), but her desire to try things she probably shouldn't persists, which resulted in her eyeing up a slide at Area 47, which was prohibited to women.

But this didn't stop her.

Iffland is also known for cliff diving (Dean Treml/Red Bull via Getty Images)

You know what they say, telling someone they can't do something makes them want to do it more and this is no different with the diver.

In a clip posted to her Instagram last year, she can be heard explaining: "Women are not supposed to do this slide."

Only then, she ignored the sign completely and went down because of 'YOLO', going viral because of her actions, as she can be seen flying down the slide which can reach speeds of 50mph.

She's heard screaming but the world champion confirmed it was with a joyous scream in the social media caption: "Here for a good time not a long time! Another YOLO moment."

The viral stunt garnered millions of views online, but the question begs, why aren't women allowed on the slide?

You may think it's something to do with sexism or outdated laws, but it turns out that it's due to health and safety.

The move was in response to reports from several women in recent years complaining about having their private areas being 'ripped apart' as a result of high-speed water slides like this one.

It's an extremely painful result for a few seconds of fun, and it makes the aforementioned video look a lot more dangerous.

The US National Library of Medicine details that severe injuries can be sustained if high pressure water enters their body, with the chances of infection increasing due to the bacteria and other foreign bodies in water.

The professional diver claimed she didn't intend to make a mockery of health and safety rules (Instagram/@rhiannan_iffland)

Speaking to news.com.au later about her decision, she insisted that her decisions weren't to 'mock' the measures put in place.

She stated: “It was never my intent to mock the safety regulations of this waterslide. A person’s safety is paramount and I am constantly weighing up any danger with my job. To suggest otherwise, is wrong."

In a previous statement to LADbible, Area 47 adventure park said that while the ride was open to men and women, guidelines were altered following 'a significant increase in accidents on this slide'.

A spokesperson stated: "This led to a difficult decision: either disassemble the water slide or restrict its use to men only, as it stands now," a spokesperson said.

"Our highest priority is ensuring the safety and happiness of all our guests, regardless of gender."