Sergey Boytsov
Sergey Boytsov | |
|---|---|
| File:SergeyBoytcov01.jpg | |
| Born | August 15, 1994 |
| Occupations | extremal, actor |
| Years active | 2011-present |
| Height | 185 cm (6 ft 1 in) |
| Children | Boytsov Christian |
| Parents |
|
| Relatives | Viktoria Vasilyevna Boytsova (grandmother) |
| Website | sergeyboytsov |
Sergey Boytsov (Russian: Сергей Дмитриевич Бойцов; 15 August 1994, Klin, Moscow Oblast, Russia) is a Russian extreme athlete, base jumper, and actor.[1][2][3][4][5][6]
In 2023, he became the first to jump[7] with a parachute from the tallest skyscraper in Europe, the Lakhta Centre. Boytsov gained recognition as an extreme aerial stunts performed under hot air balloons.
On 23 September 2024, Boytsov organized and refereed what was described as the world's first boxing match held on the upper surface of a hot air balloon in free flight, in the Moscow Region. The event featured professional athletes and was noted by media outlets such as Forbes Russia as one of the most unusual combat sports venues in history.[8]
On 12 March 2025, Boytsov and Guinness World Record holder Vladimir Murzaev[9]played a table tennis match on a platform suspended beneath a hot air balloon at 2,450 meters above sea level over the Azat Reservoir in Armenia.
On 5 June 2025, Boytsov performed giant swings on a horizontal bar suspended under a hot air balloon at 1,500 meters without any safety equipment or parachute. The stunt was registered as a world record.[1][10]
On 1 October 2025, Sergei Boytsov conducted the first documented football match on a full-size platform[11] suspended beneath a hot-air balloon in free flight.
Beyond sports, Boytsov is the founder of Created by the Heavens («Создан небесами»), an organization dedicated to large-scale aerial stunts and ballooning projects. In 2024, he introduced Russia's largest hot air balloon,[12] decorated with a symbolic image of a boy watering flowers, combining references to The Little Prince, the anime character Naruto, and himself.
Sergey Boytsov has also pursued acting, appearing in Russian films. In 2025, he was featured in the monster action film Kraken.
His performances often involve suspended platforms, gymnastic equipment, or even the upper surface of a balloon envelope in free flight.
Biography
[edit | edit source]Boytsov was born in Klin, Moscow Oblast, Russia.[13]
Boytsov was raised primarily by his mother, Evgeniya Yuryevna Rybakova, and his grandmother, Viktoria Vasilyevna Boytsova, who played a particularly important role in his upbringing and maintained a special bond with him throughout his childhood. His father, Sergey Viktorovich Seryogin, was largely absent during his early years.
Son - Christian (Бойцов Кристиан Сергеевич).[14]
In his youth, Boytsov started his career as a fitness model, before shifting his focus toward extreme disciplines such as parachuting, aerial performance, and experimental balloon-based stunts.
Sky Football Match Record (2025)
[edit | edit source]On 1 October 2025, Sergei Boytsov conducted the first documented football match [15]on a full-size platform suspended beneath a hot-air balloon in free flight. The project demonstrated the feasibility of large external aerial platforms and became a verified record in aerial sports.
The project took one year to complete and involved a 16 × 10 m modular platform assembled and disassembled four times. Testing included one winch lift in a hangar, two tethered balloon flights, and one free-flight test with parachute deployment.
The full operational system: platform, players, technical equipment, balloon components and safety gear: weighed 2,517.6 kg. Aerodynamic drag during ascent reached 9.5 kN, temporarily increasing the load by about 950 kg.
More than 700 hours of assembly work were carried out, with 22 vehicles supporting the launch operations.
The final flight occurred in the Tula Region, Russia, piloted by Ivan Menyailo (Иван Меняйло). The platform carried Sergei Boytsov, athlete Mikhail Litvin and referee Viktor Chalov. The balloon reached 6,000 ft and remained airborne for 1.5 hours.
Twenty footballs were placed on the platform at takeoff; all were lost during the match.
The project became the first verified football match performed in free flight on a full-size aerial platform, involving 38 team members and multiple flight tests
Covers
[edit | edit source]| Year | Photographer | Country | Magazine |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | Sergey Kalabushkin |  Russia
|
Uamodel[16] |
| 2016 | Luis Rafael |  United States
|
2Bexposed[17] |
| David Vance | United States
|
Wiremag[18][19] | |
| David Vance | United States
|
Adon[20] | |
| 2017 | Sergey Kalabushkin | Russia
|
Bloggmagazine[21] |
| 2018 | David Vance | United States
|
2Bexposed[22] |
| Jorge Freire | United States
|
Wiremag[23][24] | |
| 2019 | Jorge Freire |  Australia
|
DNA Magazine[25][26] |
| 2025 | Mikhail Peshkov | Russia | Men Today Magazine |
| 2025 | Mikhail Peshkov
Igor Vaskov |
Russia | Publimetro |
| 2025 | Sergei Shchelukhin | Russia | Hello!Russia Magazine |
Engineering collaboration and record-setting project
[edit | edit source]In 2025, Sergey Boytsov collaborated with the Russian engineering company Top Systems, developers of the T-FLEX PLM software suite, to design and calculate a special platform for a horizontal bar to be suspended beneath a hot air balloon. The project aimed to enable Boytsov to perform a full gymnastic rotation — the “giant swing” or sun — at an altitude of 1,500 meters without any safety equipment or parachute.
The engineering challenge was to create a lightweight yet durable structure capable of withstanding dynamic loads generated by Boytsov's movements in flight. The T-FLEX CAD and T-FLEX VR systems were used to design and virtually simulate the platform before construction. Stress and stability analyses were carried out using T-FLEX Analysis, allowing the engineering team to model real-world aerodynamic and structural conditions in a virtual environment.
The platform, measuring approximately 6×6 meters and weighing 600 kilograms, [27]was built from reinforced aluminum profiles to ensure both strength and minimal weight. The design required non-standard cross-sections and additional internal bracing to prevent oscillations during the maneuver.
According to Top Systems engineer Nikita Ryabov, the project required precise structural verification because “the cost of an error was a human life.”
The successful completion of the stunt marked the first-ever gymnastic rotation performed on a horizontal bar suspended under a balloon in free flight. The feat was officially recognized as a world record and highlighted the intersection of aerosport engineering and human endurance.[2]
Recognition
[edit | edit source]The world's first boxing match held on the upper surface of a hot air balloon in free flight was noted by media outlets such as Forbes Russia as one of the most unusual combat sports venues in history.[8]
On 12 March 2025, above the Azat Reservoir in Armenia, Boytsov, alongside Guinness World Record holder Vladimir Murzaev (highlining), played a table tennis match on a platform suspended beneath a hot air balloon at 2,450 meters above sea level
On 5 June 2025, in the Moscow Region, Boytsov performed giant swings on a horizontal bar suspended beneath a hot air balloon at 1,500 meters, it was recognized as a world record by Russian[28] and international organizations.
On 1 October 2025, Sergei Boytsov conducted the first documented football match[29] on a full-size platform suspended beneath a hot-air balloon in free flight. The project demonstrated the feasibility of large external aerial platforms and became a verified record in aerial sports.The video of the high-altitude football game has gone viral[30], amassing over 50 million views so far.
Personal life
[edit | edit source]In 2019, Boytsov married Viktoria Demidova, a businesswoman and founder of fitness apps for smartphones.[31][32] In 2019, they had a son, Christian (Бойцов Кристиан Сергеевич).[14] In 2021 they divorced and Boytsov began a relationship with Anastasia Sozonik, a blogger.[33]
Sergey Boytsov has said that he grew up without his father's presence.[34] In 2024, during the presentation of the Created by the Heavens balloon, both of his parents appeared together publicly for the first time in thirty years. Sergey Boytsov described this as their "first shared celebration".
References
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- ^ a b https://www.mmamania.com/2025/3/5/24378208/russian-lunatics-new-world-record-hot-air-balloon-boxing-match-without-parachutes-insurance-video
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External links
[edit | edit source]- Official website (in Russian)
- Sergey Boytsov on InstagramLua error in Module:WikidataCheck at line 29: attempt to index field 'wikibase' (a nil value).