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Dessi Espaņa (died May 22, 2004) was an American performer with the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus. She died after a fall while performing aerial acrobatics using Chiffon Scarves without a net at the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul, Minnesota. She was married with 2 young children. She was born into a Bulgarian family of circus performers and married Ivan Espaņa in 1992.
Up until 1999 she held the world record for twirling hula hoops, spinning 97 at a time.
An old and little-used law on the books in Minnesota makes it illegal to allow performers to do high-flying acrobatic acts without a net underneath. Violations are considered gross misdemeanors, punishable with a US$ 250 fine and up to a year in jail. It is unclear if the law will be enforced in this case.