Police have warned people not to copy professional cliff divers after two members of the public got into difficulty in the water off the north coast.

Superintendent of Causeway Coast and Glens Policing District, Mark Roberts, said officers received a number reports of members of the public diving from cliffs near Dunluce Castle on Thursday evening after a practice session involving professional divers for the upcoming Red Bull Cliff Diving Series in Ballycastle.

Speaking to BBC News NI, Supt Mark Roberts said two people had to be “assisted from the water” after the practice session had finished.

In a statement, Red Bull Cliff Diving World Series said competitors in the competition were trained professionals and warned of the many dangers involved if members of the public attempted the same stunts.

“The impact of hitting the water after up to 27m of free fall is nine times harder than jumping from a 10 m tower,” they said.

“If you are not perfectly trained and experienced, you risk your life.”

“After the event took place last night we received a number of calls to say that people were diving from the cliffs in the area,” Supt Roberts said.

“Two of them had to be assisted by the Red Bull Team.

“The concern that we have is that people will see the cliff divers, be attracted to give it a go themselves and they won’t understand just how much goes into making it a safe event.

“That is in terms of understanding how deep the water is, where the tides are and what is not visible under the surface.”

Supt Roberts said that the best advice he could give to people who have no experience cliff diving is to “leave it to the professionals”.

Crowds are expected along the north coast on Saturday to see professional divers compete at the Red Bull Cliff Diving World Series.

It is the first time the event has ever been staged in Northern Ireland.

Competitors will launch themselves from a man-made platform at a height of 27m for male divers and 21m for female competitors near Ballycastle Harbour over the weekend.

Numerous safety measures are in place during the event, including safety divers in the water and standby boats stationed nearby during dives.

Cliff divers are judged on criteria similar to Olympic standards with technique, synchronisation of rotations and twists, clean lines and water entry all being scored.