Episode transcript

Note: This transcript has been edited for clarity and readability while staying true to the spirit of the conversation.

Amanda: This is Not Just A…, the podcast where we get to know the person behind the job title. I’m your host, Amanda, and today we’re chatting with Rhiannan Iffland, professional cliff diver. We talk about how she got into diving, the training process, how she overcomes fear — but more importantly, who she is outside of work. Hint: she’s got more than one hidden talent.

Amanda: Rhiannan, welcome to the show. I’m very excited to have you on. I have so many questions about being a professional cliff diver. I know this podcast is about who you are behind the profession, but we absolutely have to touch on it. We’re the same age and I feel like I’ve achieved nothing.

How did you get into cliff diving? Give us the rundown.

Rhiannan: It’s a long story. I grew up on the shores of Lake Macquarie. I was always a water baby, always adventurous. I wasn’t really the academic of the family. I started gymnastics and diving when I was around nine.

We had family friends whose daughters did gymnastics, and they were flipping around on the grass. I was jealous. One day I said to Mum, “I want to learn how to do that.” She took me to a trampoline club, and from there I started gymnastics. I met some kids who were diving at Lambton Pool in Newcastle, and Mum took me along. That was it. I was about ten.

I went into three-metre springboard and ten-metre platform with aspirations to go to the Olympics. I competed internationally as a junior and was on the cusp of making the senior team. Then I started to feel burnt out. I’d moved from Newcastle to Sydney to train full-time. I didn’t fall out of love with diving, but I needed something different.

After school I travelled a bit, and then I was offered a job as an aquatic acrobat on a cruise ship.

Amanda: We need to delve into that separately.

Rhiannan: I remember running down to Dad in the backyard and saying, “Oh my God, they’ve offered me a job on a cruise ship as a diver.” It was entertainment — diving, performing. That was the first time I was introduced to high diving above ten metres. As soon as I saw it in the show, I thought, I want to do that.

Then women were introduced into the Red Bull Cliff Diving World Series in 2013. As soon as I saw that, I started transitioning my skills towards high diving.

Amanda: Were women not in it before then?

Rhiannan: No, the women started in 2013.

Amanda: And you’ve obviously gone on to win championships and medals. It’s amazing.

Let’s go back to the cruise ships. What does being a diver on a cruise ship actually involve?

Rhiannan: It was like a Cirque do Soleil show — a big theatre production. At the time there were only two ships with the shows, and the cast was about 20 people: divers, acrobats, dancers, aerialists, and high divers.

We did around ten shows a week, each about an hour long. I did springboard diving, high diving, dancing — which I was terrible at — trampoline, aerialist work. It was fun. I developed new passions and skills, and it reignited my fire for the sport.

Amanda: How often do you train now?

Rhiannan: Six days a week. Strength and conditioning in the gym, then pool sessions every day with the ten-metre divers in Sydney.

People think I just watch a YouTube video and give it a go. There’s a lot of technical work behind it.

Amanda: I recently went to Polignano a Mare, where you’ve competed. I watched two guys walking along the cliff edge to jump in, and from the safety of the water I was thinking, that is terrifying. Is it scary?

Rhiannan: That’s the biggest misconception — that we’re not scared. Every single time I go up there, there’s that voice in my head. That overwhelming rush of emotion. It gets easier to manage, but it never goes away. It’s a natural reaction.

Sometimes I rely on the training and the hard work behind the scenes to build confidence.

Amanda: Do you say anything to yourself before you jump?

Rhiannan: I’ve definitely built a routine over the years. There’s a lot of things that I go over in my head. I think the build-up and most of the fear and the emotions happens in the hours prior to the dive. I find it important to go through it all and to accept those and sit with it before I step up and have to focus on doing three flips with two twists, you know? Every diver has their own way of managing nerves.

Amanda: What’s been the scariest dive?

Rhiannan: They’re all scary. My most difficult dive — the one with the most twists and flips — is always the scariest. Even after doing it so many times, I still think, will my body take over? Will muscle memory kick in? It usually does.

But the scariest location was inside a salt mine in Romania. We were 150 metres underground. The water was 17% denser than seawater, so the impact was strong. When you hit the water, you shot back up like a cork out of a champagne bottle. That was scary because I didn’t know what to expect.

Amanda: You can’t train for that.

Rhiannan: Not really. We did some lower dives first, but you can’t fully simulate it.

Amanda: Let’s talk about you outside of diving. Who are you when nobody’s watching?

Rhiannan: I’m pretty normal. Laidback. Since finishing the season a couple of weeks ago, I’ve been drinking wine with friends, surfing, mountain biking, skiing. I like doing things that challenge me and get me outdoors.

I’m not great at any of them, but I love giving things a go. Competing is such a high emotional state — when it ends, I need something else to fill my cup. I try not to let the comedown hit too hard. What goes up must come down.

Amanda: What are you deeply passionate about that might surprise people who only know you professionally?

Rhiannan: I dabble in a lot of things. I’m passionate about pushing my limits and trying to be 1% better every training session. Even when I’m off, there’s always that voice asking what my competitors are doing.

I’m passionate about family and friends. Just being a normal person, I don’t know.

Amanda: You used to teach young divers?

Rhiannan: I did. I don’t have time at the moment, but I love sharing the sport. High diving isn’t easy to get into. I’ve helped a few divers transition into it, and that’s something I care about — helping others learn the ropes.

Amanda: If you weren’t a cliff diver, what would you be known for?

Rhiannan: Before I “ran away with the circus,” as my mum calls it, I actually wanted to join the police force. I was obsessed with it. I wanted to specialise in water rescue. Growing up where I did, being around the ocean, it felt natural.

Amanda: What’s a lesson you’ve learned outside of work that’s made you better at your job?

Rhiannan: Never close the door. Never turn down an opportunity.

My grandfather always said, if an opportunity comes up, don’t close the door. Give it a go. If you don’t like it, walk back through. My sister said the same before I joined the ship — if it doesn’t work, get on the next plane and come home.

It sounds simple, but it’s carried me through my whole career. It’s better to try than to look back and wonder.

Amanda: How do the other sides of you show up in your work as a cliff diver?

Rhiannan: My family connection is huge. Every time I step on the platform, I think about my nephews and niece. It helps me escape the nerves. It’s my secret weapon. If I do well, they love me. If I don’t, they still love me. That perspective keeps everything grounded.

Amanda: Do you have a pump-up song?

Rhiannan: Van Morrison. 80’s, 70’s music. Pearl Jam. John Farnham — “Two Strong Hearts.”

Amanda: Great song, we love that. What would people be surprised to learn about your job day to day?

Rhiannan: That people think I’m not afraid of what I do. Also the work behind the scenes. Training six days a week. Media, marketing, building a brand. There’s a lot more than the two seconds of the dive.

I’m not on social media much but I enjoy it — showing the emotions, the fears we overcome, the locations we visit — but it’s only part of the job.

Amanda: Final question. What’s your hidden talent?

Rhiannan: Sometimes I can sing. In the shower. In the car… I’ll stick with singing in the shower.

Amanda: Van Morrison?

Rhiannan: No, that would be too embarrassing.

Amanda: Rhiannan, thank you so much for joining us. It’s been wonderful hearing about your journey and all the layers behind being a professional cliff diver. I’ll be watching your competitions next year.

Rhiannan: Thank you. It’s been a pleasure.

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