PALAWAN, PHILIPPINES - APRIL 12: (EDITORIAL USE ONLY) In this handout image provided by Red Bull, Rhiannan Iffland of Australia dives from a rock pinnacle at the Small Lagoon on Miniloc Island during the first competition day of the first stop of the Red Bull Cliff Diving World Series on April 12, 2019 at Palawan, Philippines. (Photo by Dean Treml/Red Bull via Getty Images)
The professional cliff diving competition
01:34 - Source: CNN
CNN  — 

Few sports combine body-bending athleticism with daredevil spirit quite like the Cliff Diving World Series.

The seven-stop global tour recently got underway on Palawan Island, the Philippines, where competitors plunged 27 meters into the ocean from a board precariously perched on a cliff edge.

Defending champions Gary Hunt and Rhiannan Iffland recorded victories at the season-opener. The circuit will visit Ireland, Italy, the Azores (Portugal), Lebanon, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Spain, where it concludes in September.

To get a sense of the dramatic heights the divers will tackle throughout the season, take a look at the video at the top of the page.