World champion skydiver falls to his death as parachute fails to open from jump over Mont Blanc

A French skydiver has died after his parachute malfunctioned during a jump over the Alps.

World champion Pierre Wolnik was performing a daring dive above France's Mont Blanc on 7 February when tragedy occurred.

According to French language outlets L'Equipe and TF1, the 37-year-old had jumped from his helicopter flying over the Haute-Savoie region in a wingsuit; however, his parachute failed to deploy at the critical moment, meaning that Wolnik was left to freefall through the sky.

Wolnik is understood to have crashed into the ground in the neighbourhood of Les Bossons, on the outskirts of Chamonix, where emergency services were called to his aid.

Unfortunately, they were not able to save the athlete, who ultimately died from his injuries before his body was airlifted away by a helicopter.

Pierre Wolnik has died after his parachute failed to open during a skydive (Instagram/pierrewolnik)

An investigation into what caused the malfunction is currently ongoing.

His death was confirmed by the French Parachuting Federation, who shared the following statement on social media.

"It is with profound sadness that we announce the passing of Pierre Wolnik, which occurred on Saturday, February 7th," the tribute began.

"Pierre leaves behind the memory of a teammate whose presence will forever be felt. Today, the entire skydiving community mourns and pays tribute to a young man known for his talent and human qualities.

Stock image of wingsuit skydiver (Getty Stock Image)

"On behalf of the entire Federation, we extend our sincere condolences to his family, loved ones, teammates, coach, and the members of the French national teams who had the privilege of knowing him."

Wolnik had been a key figure in the world of skydiving, being crowned the wingsuit world champion in both 2022 and 2024. Wingsuit flying is a form of skydiving in which athletes wear a specialised jumpsuit to increase gliding before deploying a parachute.

The 37-year-old died near the resort of Chamonix (Getty Stock Images)

"The entire sport parachuting community mourns the loss of a talented young man with such a warm smile," added Yves-Marie Guillot, head of the French Parachuting Federation, on Facebook.

"Our condolences go first and foremost to his family and loved ones, but also to his teammates and the entire French team."

How safe is wingsuit jumping?

Although safety issues are constantly improving, wingsuit jumping is considered to be one of the most dangerous extreme sports, with Explorer's Web revealing there is an average of one death per 500 base jumps.

Flier and wingsuit designer Matt Gerdes told the Guardian that wingsuit Base jumping, where wingsuit fliers jump from a mountain or another fixed surface rather than a plane, is particularly risky.

He said: "The simple truth is that wingsuit Base jumpers don’t know what they are getting into, don’t know how to practice the sport safely, and don’t even know enough to know how little they know."