A daredevil highliner who fell 50 metres to his death was wearing a safety harness – but wasn’t clipped in.
Police believe it either came undone on its own or that Gustavo Guimarães forgot to attach the leash to his harness.
Guimarães, 29, plunged 50 metres (164ft) on Friday (25 Jul).
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He had already walked across the highline once but fell while making the return crossing.
The horror unfolded at Usina Waterfall in Alto Paraíso de Goiás, Brazil.
Highlining is a sport that involves walking across a slackline – a webbing strap – suspended at a great height, often between cliffs, mountains, or buildings.
A spokesperson for the International Slackline Association said: “Tourists passing by saw him walking to the far end, where the line was anchored.
“On his way back, he fell and tried to grab the webbing, but couldn’t hold on.”
Police visited the scene, found no signs of foul play, and decided not to open a criminal investigation.
Guimarães worked as an industrial climber for a specialist company.
He had been practising highlining since 2020, as reported by Need To Know.
His friend Pedro Paulo de Oliveira told local media: “He was deeply loved. The global highline community is in mourning – everyone is heartbroken.
“Young, adventurous, a free spirit. Always smiling and kind – that’s how everyone knew him.”
Guimarães once held the record for the longest highline crossing in Brazil’s Central-West region.
He walked 800 metres across the country’s third-longest line in Cocalzinho de Goiás in June 2024.
Fellow athlete Matheus Waeny told local media: “Gusta smashed the record on his first go.”
According to Waeny, Guimarães had been preparing to cross a 1.1-km-long line.
He said: “It’s really important for people to understand that Gusta wasn’t just some thrill-seeker who didn’t know what he was doing and sadly had an accident.
“Not at all. He was a true professional who made the highline community proud.”
Guimarães was laid to rest in Ouro Branco on Sunday (27 Jul).
His sister Ana Letícia wrote: “Gustavo died doing what he loved, even if the poetry of that now hangs over us like a ghost.”
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