Video: Russian Gymnast Performs Gravity-Defying Stunts On Hot Air Balloon, Internet Reacts

Sergey Boytsov, a Russian athlete, performed several gravity-defying stunts whilst hanging from a hot air balloon. The gymnast claimed that he set a world record. The 30-year-old was seen performing on a horizontal bar, which was suspended from a hot air balloon.

The video has left the internet divided, with some calling it "incredible", and others saying that the stunts are not worth risking one's life as he was not carrying any parachute. The hot air balloon was reportedly 1,500 metres up in the air.

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The video was shared on X (formerly Twitter) by Collin Rugg. The caption read, "Boytsov claims to have set a world record for the world's first gymnastic turns under a balloon at an altitude of 1500 meters without a parachute."

"Boytsov says there was no "insurance," meaning if something went wrong, he was done," it added.

The video, posted on June 19, gained massive traction with over three million views.

"Pretty sure that even if he had insurance, if something went wrong he was done," one user wrote.

"I get goosebumps watching anything like this," another added, while a user said, "This is not worth risking one's life over."

"That's incredible," one user wrote. "I don't even know how you could be harnessed in a situation like this. Twisting around the bar would probably make any kind of a harness system more risk than reward. No parachute either," another wrote.

Watch the video here:

NEW: Russian bodybuilder and daredevil Sergey Boytsov claims to have set a world record.

Boytsov claims to have set a world record for the world's first gymnastic turns under a balloon at an altitude of 1500 meters *without* a parachute.

Boytsov says there was no "insurance,"… pic.twitter.com/3gAfMCGhTc

— Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) June 19, 2025

Brazil hot-air balloon crash

Eight people were killed after a hot-air balloon carrying 21 passengers, including the pilot, crashed on Saturday in Brazil's southern state of Santa Catarina.

The tourism balloon caught fire during the flight in the early morning hours, crashing in a forest area in the city of Praia Grande, according to the state fire department.

Thirteen survivors were transported to nearby hospitals, the fire department said.