Skydive Elsinore Pro Killed In Tragic Training Accident

A professional skydiver who trained in Lake Elsinore has been killed in a training accident.

Temecula Valley resident Jonathan Tagle, 43, who trained out of , died in Norway on Wednesday, according to a news release from his team, PD Factory Team.

“It’s with great sadness that we give you the facts surrounding the accident … please know that this is full disclosure and may be uncomfortable to read,” the June 28 news release read.

Tagle been jumping all morning with members of the Fazza Sky team on a particular run in the Eidfjord region in Norway, the release stated.

“He was flying aggressively and confidently in terrain where there is no margin for error. His canopy hit a tree in a very narrow deep part of the gorge, causing him to strike the side of the gorge wall and fall into the river below. The river swept him downstream and over several waterfalls until he got stuck at the bottom of one of them,” the news release continued.

A team member tried to retrieve Tagle from the water, but he was heavily entangled in lines and material and was face down, the release stated.

Crews cut away his canopy but could see the skydiver “was already gone.”

According to the report, the canopy was still wrapped around Tagle and started to reinflate, pulling him and the team member down the river toward the next waterfall. The team member had to let go and Tagle came to rest in the next pool, where a Medivac team eventually retrieved him.

“Once the coroner here is ready to release him, Jonathan will be flown back to his family in California,” Thursday’s news release stated.

that Tagle went up against 100 competitors from 24 countries to win one gold and two silver medals in the 2011 World Cup of Canopy Piloting in Klatovy, Czech Republic. He earned the gold in the accuracy event, as well as the overall silver medal and silver in the speed event, according to Nancy Koreen, spokesperson for the United States Parachute Association.

According to his PD Factory Team bio, Tagle called Skydive Elsinore home.