In front of the Red Bull Cliff Diving World Series' biggest ever crowd of 70,000 spectators at a wind-swept La Rochelle, champion Gary Hunt swooped to conquer to pull further clear at the top of the 2011 standings.
The Englishman top scored with 401.45 points to finish ahead of Michal Navratil, who claimed a second successive top-three finish, and Alain Kohl, who made his first appearance on a World Series podium.
'It gets better every time... the crowd here are absolutely amazing'
Hunt's second successive victory in 2011 lifts him 22 points clear of his nearest rival who is now Navratil after the Czech followed up his third-placed finish in Athens by going one better in La Rochelle.
The Red Bull Cliff Diving World Series champion Hunt began his 2010 championship charge with a victory at this same venue just over 12 months ago.
The Brit thrilled the huge crowd once again, ending the competition with first a backflip and then a front quadruple somersault with one and a half twists which produced gasps from the crowd and three 10s from the judges.
Fellow Englishman Blake Aldridge, a long-time friend of Hunt, was also impressive on his World Series debut as he became the first wildcard to make it through to the final round, dislodging perennial challenger Artem Silchenko in the process.
Aldridge's brave execution of a first ever back armstand on a 27.5 metre-high platform exposed to a 60kph southwesterly wind earned its just rewards in the second round.
The challenging conditions saw this weekend's competition reduced to three rounds, with the athletes having the option to change their dive at short notice.
It made for a more tactical battle, with each diver pitting their wits not only against each other but also against the weather and the intermittent wind. It seemed at first that Slava Polyeschuk had clinched the final place on the podium, but, after a recount, Alain Kohl was revealed as the third-placed diver.
The Luxembourgian will hope to follow up his first visit to the World Series podium with another strong performance in Italy when the fifth stop in the 2011 World Series lands in Malcesine on July 24.
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Vincent Curutchet/Red Bull Cliff Diving
Brit breezes to Victory