Moment base jumper bounces off concrete pillar as he leaps BACKWARDS off a bridge in France

This is the heart-pumping moment a base jumper narrowly avoids disaster when he bounces off a concrete pillar after he leaps off a 460ft bridge in southern France.

Footage filmed on a 360-degree camera shows the adrenaline junkie heading towards the huge column after he jumps backwards off the parapet of the Verrières Viaduct.

Incredibly, the man manages to just glance the concrete pier and keep control of his parachute.

Afterwards the extreme sports professional from Mountain Man BASE joked that he had given the bridge 'a good polish' before

admitting it was one of his closest calls.

Footage shot from the ground and shared on Instagram on February 13 shows the base jumper leaping off the bridge and over his chute which opens up behind him and slows his fall.

But disaster nearly strikes when he floats backwards and his body collides with the pillar of the bridge.

Luckily, the parachute is unaffected by the impact and he manages to manoeuvre away from the structure.

Sharing the footage on Instagram, the Mountain Man Base team joked: 'All explicit language has been muted for the making of this video.'

Speaking afterwards, the daredevil said: 'I was performing an intentional stunt whereby the parachute is dangled below and I then jump backwards.

'A slight breeze in the correct direction can be beneficial for the stunt to be performed successfully.

'I ended up tapping the pillar with the side of my bum and leg. I gave the pillar a good polish.

'It's one of the closest calls I've had.

'Whenever I am trying something new it always brings up a degree of anticipation and nerves.'