EL NIDO, Palawan – A Filipino-Australian athlete hits two birds with one stone in this paradise over the weekend: make her Philippine homecoming which, in turn, hopefully rejuvenates her bid in an emerging extreme sport that’s making a return to the country this year.
Brisbane-born Xantheia Pennisi, who traces her Pinoy roots to Tarlac, tries to fly the flag of her mom’s country high as she vies in the Red Bull Cliff Diving World Series 2025 from April 11 to 13 in the heat of summer in this scenic location known for its limestone cliffs and white-sand beaches.
“Having a warm location helps,” the 26-year-old diver said. “Being able to represent Australia and the Philippines is really special and always fuels me to perform better.”
After shifting from gymnastics to diving in 2018 when she made her World Series debut, Pennisi has made steady strides, reaching her first leg podium three years later to get elevated to permanent status.
But after reaching her peak in 2023 when she captured the overall bronze medal, Pennisi looked like a shell of herself a year later when she wound up with two 12th-place finishes to get demoted back to wildcard status.
This year, the 5-foot-5 half-Pinay athlete is eager to to prove that her missteps last year were an anomaly.
“Last year, I had a very difficult season,” Pennisi admitted. “I was learning some of my harder dives when I had a struggle mentally with a certain dive, so that pulled me back a little bit.”
El Nido returns as host
But she used the break to “learn new dives and have fun with diving again.”
Indeed, there are plenty of positives for Pennisi as she remains among the elite dozen competing in the women’s division at El Nido, which is hosting the World Series for the second time and first in six years.
The Philippines is the first of four World Series stops this year.
2019 El Nido leg winner Rhiannan Iffland, Kaylea Arnett, Molly Carlson, Meili Carpenter, Nelli Chukanivska, Elisa Cosetti, Simone Leathead, Ginni van Katwijk, Iris Schmidbauer, Maria Paula Quintero, and Ellie Smart are the other female competitors.
“There’s only about 40 people in the world who actually do this sport,” Pennisi said. “It’s definitely growing, but because there’s only a limited number of athletes, we’re always supporting each other and helping each other even though we’re competitors.”
“I’m so lucky to be part of a sport where everyone wants each other to get better,” she added.
Gary Hunt, who won the male division in the 2019 El Nido leg, leads the men’s side that also has Andrea Barnaba, Carlos Gimeno, James, Lichtenstein, Yolotl Marintez, Constanin Popovici, Oleksiy Prygorov, Catalin Preda, Jonathan Paredes, Miguel Garcia, Nikita Fedotov, and Braden Rumpit.
The divers look to jump off on the right foot from heights of up to 27 meters, starting with Round One at Cove 3 in Lagen Island on Friday, then sustain their momentum in Round Two the next day at the Small Lagoon in Miniloc Island, before finishing off their campaigns on a high in Rounds Three and Four on Sunday at the Small Lagoon in the same island.
The World Series opener will air on Red Bull TV, Red Bull Cliff Diving’s YouTube page, Smart, and Cignal TV.
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