Baby Penguins Show Olympic Level Diving Skills, National Geographic Calls Them ‘Medal

The Paris Olympic games are in full swing. Athletes from around the globe are competing and earning medals for their countries. While China is currently dominating the diving event, National Geographic recently added a fun twist to the Olympic games. They posted a hilarious video on Instagram, expressing disappointment that penguins weren’t part of the diving competition.

The video features baby penguins showing their diving skills. They jump off a 50-foot cliff in Antarctica, and the video was originally captured by wildlife photographer Bertie Gregory. The jaw-dropping footage is set to appear in the upcoming documentary Secrets of the Penguins in April 2025. National Geographic suggested that, even though these penguins aren’t part of the Olympics, they’re still medal winners.

The video originally circulated online in April 2024. It shows numerous baby emperor penguins on the edge preparing to jump into the sea for the first time. The video was taken by a team filming in Atka Bay on the Ekstrom Ice Shelf and they captured around 700 penguins in the act.

According to Nat Geo, it’s a rare and first-ever recording of the species diving from such a great height. Sharing the clip on Instagram, Nat Geo wrote, “They’re medal winners in our hearts and we can’t wait to see them in Secrets of the Penguins, coming to National Geographic in 2025.” The team added, “Sad to announce these baby penguins didn’t make the Paris 2024 diving team.”

Interestingly, Bertie Gregory, who took the shot reacted by saying, “Low score for style but full points for effort.”

A user wrote, “Team Antarctica for the gold.”

Another joked, “They were disqualified for being too splashy.”

“How do they get back up when finished swimming for food? Why find a high entry point then?” a comment read.

Another suggested, “They have to take a back flip in the air too. That’s why they are not selected for Paris Olympics 2024.”

An individual motivating the penguins shared, “Keep practising guys next Olympics is yours.”

One more added, “That was some of the best-synchronised diving I’ve ever seen from Team Antarctica.”

Peter Fretwell, a scientist from the British Antarctic Survey, has been examining satellite images of the emperor penguin colony at Atka Bay for years. He thinks that the baby penguins might have followed a few adults who went in the wrong direction.

Normally, juvenile penguins take small jumps from the sea ice into the water. However, these penguins found themselves in a difficult position, after they felt hungry as their parents had already left to hunt for food. Seeing their elders were missing, these babies might have thought they were left to find food on their own.