Rhiannan Iffland is a 33-year-old Australian diving champion, making her quite familiar with extreme stunts in the water. But when she ignored a ‘no women’ sign next to a waterpark slide and received backlash, she had to speak out on the move.
The sign may seem offensive
Although it may initially seem so, the ‘no women’ sign on this waterpark ride isn’t put there to offend, but rather it’s in place to preserve women’s health.
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The diver found this sign at the popular Area 47 adventure park in Austria, a park known for its difficult rides and extreme water slides which are the very point of attraction of the place.
One slide is supposedly the fastest in Europe
One of the attractions at the waterpark is supposedly a slide that is Europe’s ‘fastest waterslide’ as it can go up to 50 miles an hour. Women are banned from riding this specific slide.
Of course, moving at such a high speed in a tube with water pressure around you isn’t exactly easy on the human body. Indeed, some women have reported severe injuries after going on high pressure water slides.
Iffland took no notice of the sign
The diver approached the ride and decided to take it on despite the ‘no women’ sign on the water slide which she ignored.
In the video, she points at the sign and says, “Due to high risk of injury, women are not allowed to use this slide!”
She decided to ignore the sign
“Apparently women are not supposed to do this slide,” Iffland wrote in the text over the video.
In the caption she also wrote, “Here for a good time not a long time! Another YOLO moment.”
Despite this excitement, she quickly realized her mistake after she started falling down the slide, with the video showing her looking back at her friend with a look of regret.
Her video went viral and she had some explaining to do
After the diver’s video went viral, she received a lot of backlash, and had to explain that she hadn’t intended on mocking safety regulations.
“It was never my intent to mock the safety regulations of this water slide. A person’s safety is paramount and I am constantly weighing up any danger with my job,” she told news.com.au, adding, “To suggest otherwise, is wrong.”
Users on social media were worried
People online were naturally worried for the diver who went down the high pressure slide, with some even wondering if she had given herself enema.
One person shared their experience with a high pressure slide saying, “I got the worst enema on that slide hahaha you are brave girl.”
Another person said it’s clearly men-only for a reason
One person pointed out that the slide forbade women from using it for a reason, writing, “The amount of people that don’t understand why women aren’t supposed to go on this slide is scary!”
Another also shared their experience, saying, “Unfortunately I got a water slide enema. Peed out half the swimming pool in the toilet from my behind. I literally couldn’t stand upright after it happened. Weirdest thing I’ve ever experienced.” Yikes.
A spokesperson for the park explained the rules
An Area 47 spokesperson previously explained the reasoning behind the ‘no women’ sign, saying, “Initially, this particular slide was open to both women and men. However, in the second year, we noticed a significant increase in accidents on this slide, which required us to take action.”
Area 47 then consulted manufacturers and doctors, and had to choose between disassembling the slide completely or restricting it to men-only use. They clearly picked the latter.
The spokesperson explained risks for women
“Our highest priority is ensuring the safety and happiness of all our guests, regardless of gender,” the Area 47 spokesperson added.
“The risks for women using this slide were tragically highlighted a few years ago when a woman was severely injured on a similar slide in the Canary Islands.”
Well folks, there you have it, if the sign says don’t do it, there’s probably a good reason.
