Molly Carlson Becomes First Woman to Complete Near-15-Metre Iceberg Dive Off Newfoundland

Canadian high diver Molly Carlson stood above the freezing Atlantic on a free-standing iceberg off Newfoundland, then completed a near-15-metre backward dive that made her the first woman to do so.

The Canadian high diver’s feat is the centrepiece of Red Bull Iceberg Dive, a YouTube film that follows Carlson, ice climber Will Gadd and their team through the long preparation and the uncertainty of finding ice stable enough to climb.

Searching for a “unicorn” iceberg

The challenge was never simply to reach a height and jump. Carlson and her team had to search for a stable iceberg with a suitable shelf for the dive, eventually identifying what she called a “unicorn” iceberg.

That search reflected the central risk of the project: icebergs are not fixed platforms. Gadd taught Carlson ice-climbing skills including the use of crampons and ice tools, while warning her that icebergs can roll over violently.

“Icebergs are incredibly dangerous,” Carlson says in the documentary.

The team’s planning accounted for that danger. Boats and safety equipment were on standby, and Carlson said the group would call off the attempt if conditions made the dive too dangerous. The project took about four years from conception to execution, Carlson said, with six months of training before the dive itself.

Training for ice and cold water

Carlson wore a wetsuit and trained for the cold-water conditions she would face in the Atlantic. The preparation paired the technical demands of ice climbing with the physical shock of entering freezing water after a high dive.

Gadd’s role was more than instructional. In the film, Carlson and Gadd work together to climb the iceberg before she reaches the edge for the backward dive. He said the prospect of helping Carlson create something meaningful was what drew him to the project.

“I wouldn’t have done it if it was just about climbing an iceberg,” Gadd said in Red Bull material accompanying the film. “The opportunity to help Molly do something beautiful and meaningful was what drew me to this project.”

For Carlson, the iceberg also carried a personal metaphor. “You only see the small part above the surface while so much is hidden underneath,” she says in the film, connecting that image to anxieties and fears that can remain unseen.

A shock on entering the Atlantic

The dive itself lasted moments. Its aftermath demanded immediate action.

Carlson said the shock of the freezing water was instant. “I remember coming up out of the water and thinking, ‘Swim! You’ve got to get away,’” she recalled.

She later described the experience as both among the scariest and the best of her life. “For sure, the best day of my life,” she said.

The film presents a carefully prepared extreme-sport project, not an invitation for others to follow suit. Stephanie Bakalar, a spokesperson for the Lifesaving Society Ontario, urged people not to attempt iceberg diving themselves. Speaking to CBC News, she cited cold-water effects, rough water and the unpredictable movement of icebergs among the dangers.

“This is definitely a ‘don’t try this at home’ situation,” Bakalar told CBC. “She’s a professional.”

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