Felix Baumgartner and four other famous names who died undertaking risky adventures

Felix Baumgartner, who jumped from the edge of space at a speed faster than of sound, is no more. He died in a motorised paragliding accident in Italy. The Austrian daredevil made some scary jumps in his lifetime, with the record-breaking feat coming in 2012. He fell near the swimming pool of a hotel while flying over the village of Porto Sant'Elpidio. He died doing what he loved. Many more people took up risky adventures and passed away on the job. Here are some famous names who met a similar fate to Felix.

The 56-year-old Austrian became the first person to break the sound barrier in freefall when he jumped from the edge of space and reached a speed of 1,357.6 km/h. He jumped from a capsule suspended from a helium balloon 39km (128,000 ft) up in the stratosphere. Nicknamed "Fearless Felix", he was known for his adventurous jumps. He plunged 98ft down from the hand of Rio de Janeiro's Christ the Redeemer statue in 1999. In 2003, he flew across the English Channel wearing a specially made jumpsuit with carbon-fibre wings. He once famously said, "You don't think about breaking records anymore...the only thing that you want is to come back alive."

The Australian zookeeper became a household name with his television series The Crocodile Hunter. He did many more wildlife documentaries, and also co-owned and operated the Australia Zoo. People were fascinated to see him catch crocodiles in the wild, and even held the small ones in his hand. The perils of his job were well-known, and that is what killed Irwin. While shooting for an underwater documentary in the Great Barrier Reef, a stingray injured Irwin and he died on 4 September 2006 at the age of 44. His death came as a shock to his fans and followers worldwide.

Just like Felix, Dean was also known for his daring adventure activities, and died during one stint at the age of 43. He was a free climber who went up several mountains. Dean undertook many solo ascents in Yosemite and Patagonia, including a free-solo climb of a small part of El Capitan in Yosemite. He broke the world record for climbing The Reticent Wall in the same valley, finishing it in 34 hours and 57 minutes with Ammon McNeely and Ivo Ninov. On May 16, 2015, Potter tried a proximity wingsuit flight from Taft Point above Yosemite Valley. He and Graham Hunt had to clear a small notch in a rocky ridge line. Hunt hit a side wall, while Potter crashed after clearing the notch, both of them were killed on impact.

Sutton famously parachuted into the 2012 London Olympics opening ceremony dressed as James Bond. He was a stunt double and skydived out of the helicopter above the Olympic Stadium. In August 2013, Sutton participated in a three-day wingsuit event in Chamonix, France. On 14 August, he took a warm-up flight which was to last only about a minute. However, after 20 seconds, as he made the jump from the plane at a height of 10,800 feet at a speed of 249 km/h, he moved off the route and crashed into a mountain ridge. He was declared dead on the scene. Sutton was 42.

Hart was most famously known for his promotions in World Wrestling Federation (WWF). He wrestled under the names The Blue Angel and The Blue Blazer. Hart was a four-time WWF World Tag Team Champion and won the 1994 WWF King of the Ring. On May 23, 1999, during WWF's Over the Edge event, he was being lowered into the ring as part of his entrance from the rafters of Kemper Arena in Kansas City, Missouri. However, the machine malfunctioned and he crashed onto the floor. He died in front of a live audience and millions more who were watching him on TV. He was 34.