New Delhi, July 18 -- Extreme athlete Felix Baumgartner, the first skydiver to fall faster than the speed of sound during a 24-mile leap through the stratosphere more than a decade ago, died in a crash Thursday along the eastern coast of Italy. He was 56.

Italian firefighters who responded said a paraglider crashed into the side of a swimming pool in the city of Porto Sant Elpidio.

The city's mayor confirmed Baumgartner's death in a social media post.

"Our community is deeply affected by the tragic disappearance of Felix Baumgartner, a figure of global prominence, a symbol of courage and passion for extreme flight," Mayor Massimiliano Ciarpella said.

Baumgartner, known as "Fearless Felix," stunned the world in 2012 when he became the ...