FAITH AND DETERMINATION: Bissonnette’s dream to leap from a building on wheelchair comes true in Sibu. It earns him a world record. — Photo by Othman Ishak
SIBU: A second world record was created at the BASE jump here yesterday after paralysed Lonnie Bissonnette became the first person to parachute off a building on a wheelchair.
The 48-year-old Canadian leap off the 27-storey Wisma Sanyan and landed on Sibu Townsquare at 9.20am to loud cheers from the crowd.
On Saturday, the first world record was created when Sarawak Tourism Board executive officer Rudy Anoi became the first tandem BASE jumper to leap from a building held by another jumper on parachute at 10am.
BASE is an acronym that stands for four categories of fixed objects from which a person can jump, namely buildings, antennae, spans (bridge) and earth (cliff).
Sibu Division Tourism Task Group chairman Sim Kok Kee confirmed the two world records to reporters yesterday.
“I am happy these were made in Sibu. I am also happy this event has been the most successful among the five we had organised thus far. This year’s edition had the most participants and a bigger spectator crowd.
“We shall continue to host this … with better safety and security measures, of course.”
Bissonnette, who started base jumping 19 years ago, was all smiles when his long cherished dream materialised.
He beamed: “For many years, I had wanted to do this, and I had prepared for it. I thank the host in Sibu for giving me this chance.”
Bissonnette said it was his sixth time to leap off on his wheel chair, but the first from a building.
He said he had been training hard for the jump as a slight mistake could spell disaster.
Bissonnette was paralysed nine years ago in a BASE jumping accident.
The Canadian jumper did not give up because he regarded the extreme game a part of his soul.
“I do not know what makes me go on. I love the sports, and I love to fly. I do not want to quit,” he told The Borneo Post in an earlier interview.
He related that when he was injured in his 1,100th jump, the doctor told him he would never jump again.
But determination got the better of him and he began training. A few months later he succeeded in performing this dare-devil act. He showed the video clips to his doctor, who was dumbfounded.
Bissonnette has since then done about 1,150 jumps.