![Agata Bogusz wrakowe](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/71/Agata_Bogusz_wrakowe.png)
Freediving, free-diving, free diving, breath-hold diving, or skin diving is a form of
underwater diving
Underwater diving, as a human activity, is the practice of descending below the water's surface to interact with the environment. It is also often referred to as diving, an ambiguous term with several possible meanings, depending on contex ...
that relies on
breath-holding until resurfacing rather than the use of breathing apparatus such as
scuba gear
Scuba diving is a mode of underwater diving whereby divers use breathing equipment that is completely independent of a surface air supply. The name "scuba", an acronym for " Self-Contained Underwater Breathing Apparatus", was coined by Chri ...
.
Besides the limits of breath-hold, immersion in water and exposure to high ambient pressure also have physiological effects that limit the depths and duration possible in freediving.
Examples of freediving activities are
traditional fishing techniques, competitive and non-competitive freediving, competitive and non-competitive
spearfishing
Spearfishing is a method of fishing that involves impaling the fish with a straight pointed object such as a spear, gig or harpoon. It has been deployed in artisanal fishing throughout the world for millennia. Early civilisations were familia ...
and freediving
photography
Photography is the art, application, and practice of creating durable images by recording light, either electronically by means of an image sensor, or chemically by means of a light-sensitive material such as photographic film. It is employe ...
,
synchronised swimming
Synchronized swimming (in British English, synchronised swimming) or artistic swimming is a sport where swimmers perform a synchronized choreographed routine, accompanied by music. The sport is governed internationally by FINA (the ''Fédératio ...
,
underwater football,
underwater rugby
Underwater rugby (UWR) is an underwater team sport. During a match two teams try to score a negatively buoyant ball (filled with saltwater) into the opponents’ goal at the bottom of a swimming pool. It originated from within the physical ...
,
underwater hockey
Underwater hockey (UWH), (also known as Octopush in the United Kingdom) is a globally played limited-contact sport in which two teams compete to manoeuvre a puck across the bottom of a swimming pool into the opposing team's goal by propelling ...
,
underwater target shooting
Underwater Target Shooting is an underwater sport/shooting sport that tests a competitors’ ability to accurately use a speargun via a set of individual and team events conducted in a swimming pool using freediving or Apnoea technique. The spor ...
and
snorkeling
Snorkeling ( British and Commonwealth English spelling: snorkelling) is the practice of swimming on or through a body of water while equipped with a diving mask, a shaped breathing tube called a snorkel, and usually swimfins. In cooler waters ...
. There are also a range of "competitive
apnea" disciplines; in which competitors attempt to attain great depths, times, or distances on a single breath.
Historically, the term ''free diving'' was also used to refer to
scuba diving
Scuba diving is a mode of underwater diving whereby divers use breathing equipment that is completely independent of a surface air supply. The name "scuba", an acronym for " Self-Contained Underwater Breathing Apparatus", was coined by Chr ...
, due to the freedom of movement compared with
surface supplied diving.
History
![Bern Cod](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/91/Bern_Cod.318%2C_f.020v-de_lapide_acato%28agate%29.jpg)
In ancient times freediving without the aid of mechanical devices was the only possibility, with the exception of the occasional use of reeds and leather breathing bladders.
The divers faced the same problems as divers today, such as
decompression sickness
Decompression sickness (abbreviated DCS; also called divers' disease, the bends, aerobullosis, and caisson disease) is a medical condition caused by dissolved gases emerging from solution as bubbles inside the body tissues during decompressio ...
and
blacking out during a breath hold. Freediving was practiced in
ancient cultures to
gather food, harvest resources such as
sponge
Sponges, the members of the phylum Porifera (; meaning 'pore bearer'), are a basal animal clade as a sister of the diploblasts. They are multicellular organisms that have bodies full of pores and channels allowing water to circulate throug ...
and
pearl
A pearl is a hard, glistening object produced within the soft tissue (specifically the mantle) of a living shelled mollusk or another animal, such as fossil conulariids. Just like the shell of a mollusk, a pearl is composed of calcium carb ...
,
reclaim sunken valuables, and to help aid
military campaigns.
In Ancient Greece, both
Plato
Plato ( ; grc-gre, Πλάτων ; 428/427 or 424/423 – 348/347 BC) was a Greek philosopher born in Athens during the Classical period in Ancient Greece. He founded the Platonist school of thought and the Academy, the first institution ...
and
Homer
Homer (; grc, Ὅμηρος , ''Hómēros'') (born ) was a Greek poet who is credited as the author of the ''Iliad'' and the ''Odyssey'', two epic poems that are foundational works of ancient Greek literature. Homer is considered one of the ...
mention the
sponge
Sponges, the members of the phylum Porifera (; meaning 'pore bearer'), are a basal animal clade as a sister of the diploblasts. They are multicellular organisms that have bodies full of pores and channels allowing water to circulate throug ...
as being used for bathing. The island of
Kalymnos
Kalymnos ( el, Κάλυμνος) is a Greek island and municipality in the southeastern Aegean Sea. It belongs to the Dodecanese island chain, between the islands of Kos (south, at a distance of ) and Leros (north, at a distance of less than ): ...
was a main centre of
diving for sponges. By using weights (
skandalopetra
diving () dates from ancient Greece, when it was used by sponge fishermen, and has been re-discovered in recent years as a freediving discipline. It was in this discipline that the first world record in freediving was registered, when the Greek sp ...
) of as much as to speed the descent, breath-holding divers would descend to depths up to to collect sponges.
Harvesting of
red coral
Precious coral, or red coral, is the common name given to a genus of marine corals, ''Corallium''. The distinguishing characteristic of precious corals is their durable and intensely colored red or pink-orange skeleton, which is used for ma ...
was also done by divers.
The
Mediterranean
The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western Europe, Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa ...
had large amounts of maritime trade. As a result of
shipwrecks
A shipwreck is the wreckage of a ship that is located either beached on land or sunken to the bottom of a body of water. Shipwrecking may be intentional or unintentional. Angela Croome reported in January 1999 that there were approximately ...
, particularly in the fierce winter storms, divers were often hired to salvage whatever they could from the seabed.
Divers would swim down to the wreck and choose the most valuable pieces to salvage.
Divers were also used in warfare. Defenses against sea vessels were often created, such as underwater
barricades, and hence divers were often used to scout out the seabed when ships were approaching an enemy harbor. If barricades were found, it was divers who were used to disassemble them, if possible.
During the
Peloponnesian War, divers were used to get past enemy
blockade
A blockade is the act of actively preventing a country or region from receiving or sending out food, supplies, weapons, or communications, and sometimes people, by military force.
A blockade differs from an embargo or sanction, which are leg ...
s to relay messages as well as supplies to allies or troops that were cut off,
and in 332 BC, during the
Siege of Tyre, the city used divers to cut the anchor cables of
Alexander
Alexander is a male given name. The most prominent bearer of the name is Alexander the Great, the king of the Ancient Greek kingdom of Macedonia who created one of the largest empires in ancient history.
Variants listed here are Aleksandar, Al ...
's attacking ships.
In Japan,
''ama'' divers began to collect pearls about 2,000 years ago.
For thousands of years, most seawater pearls were retrieved by divers working in the Indian Ocean, in areas such as the
Persian Gulf
The Persian Gulf ( fa, خلیج فارس, translit=xalij-e fârs, lit=Gulf of Fars, ), sometimes called the ( ar, اَلْخَلِيْجُ ٱلْعَرَبِيُّ, Al-Khalīj al-ˁArabī), is a mediterranean sea in Western Asia. The bod ...
, the
Red Sea
The Red Sea ( ar, البحر الأحمر - بحر القلزم, translit=Modern: al-Baḥr al-ʾAḥmar, Medieval: Baḥr al-Qulzum; or ; Coptic: ⲫⲓⲟⲙ ⲛ̀ϩⲁϩ ''Phiom Enhah'' or ⲫⲓⲟⲙ ⲛ̀ϣⲁⲣⲓ ''Phiom ǹšari''; ...
, and in the
Gulf of Mannar
The Gulf of Mannar ( ) is a large shallow bay forming part of the Laccadive Sea in the Indian Ocean with an average depth of . (between
Sri Lanka and
India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
).
A fragment of
Isidore of Charax
Isidore of Charax (; grc, Ἰσίδωρος ὁ Χαρακηνός, ''Isídōros o Charakēnós''; la, Isidorus Characenus) was a Greco-Roman geographer of the 1st century BC and 1st century AD, a citizen of the Parthian Empire, about whom nothi ...
's
Parthia
Parthia ( peo, 𐎱𐎼𐎰𐎺 ''Parθava''; xpr, 𐭐𐭓𐭕𐭅 ''Parθaw''; pal, 𐭯𐭫𐭮𐭥𐭡𐭥 ''Pahlaw'') is a historical region located in northeastern Greater Iran. It was conquered and subjugated by the empire of the Med ...
n itinerary was preserved in
Athenaeus
Athenaeus of Naucratis (; grc, Ἀθήναιος ὁ Nαυκρατίτης or Nαυκράτιος, ''Athēnaios Naukratitēs'' or ''Naukratios''; la, Athenaeus Naucratita) was a Greek rhetorician and grammarian, flourishing about the end of th ...
's 3rd-century ''
Sophists at Dinner
The ''Deipnosophistae'' is an early 3rd-century AD Greek work ( grc, Δειπνοσοφισταί, ''Deipnosophistaí'', lit. "The Dinner Sophists/Philosophers/Experts") by the Greek author Athenaeus of Naucratis. It is a long work of liter ...
'', recording freediving for pearls around an island in the
Persian Gulf
The Persian Gulf ( fa, خلیج فارس, translit=xalij-e fârs, lit=Gulf of Fars, ), sometimes called the ( ar, اَلْخَلِيْجُ ٱلْعَرَبِيُّ, Al-Khalīj al-ˁArabī), is a mediterranean sea in Western Asia. The bod ...
.
Pearl divers near the
Philippines
The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no),
* bik, Republika kan Filipinas
* ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas
* cbk, República de Filipinas
* hil, Republ ...
were also successful at harvesting large pearls, especially in the
Sulu Archipelago. At times, the largest pearls belonged by law to the sultan, and selling them could result in the death penalty for the seller. Nonetheless, many pearls made it out of the archipelago by stealth, ending up in the possession of the wealthiest families in Europe.
Pearling was popular in Qatar, Bahrain, Japan, and India. The Gulf of Mexico was also known for pearling.
Native Americans harvested freshwater pearls from lakes and rivers like the
Ohio
Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...
,
Tennessee
Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the 36th-largest by area and the 15th-most populous of the 50 states. It is bordered by Kentucky to th ...
, and
Mississippi
Mississippi () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States, bordered to the north by Tennessee; to the east by Alabama; to the south by the Gulf of Mexico; to the southwest by Louisiana; and to the northwest by Arkansas. Miss ...
, while others dived for marine pearls from the
Caribbean and waters along the coasts of
Central and
South America
South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere at the northern tip of the continent. It can also be described as the sout ...
.
In 1940,
Dottie Frazier pioneered freediving for women in the United States and also began teaching classes. It was also during this time that she began to design and sell rubber suits for Navy UDT divers.
Freediving activities
Recreational hunting and gathering
Spearfishing
Spearfishing
Spearfishing is a method of fishing that involves impaling the fish with a straight pointed object such as a spear, gig or harpoon. It has been deployed in artisanal fishing throughout the world for millennia. Early civilisations were familia ...
is an ancient method of
fishing
Fishing is the activity of trying to catch fish. Fish are often caught as wildlife from the natural environment, but may also be caught from stocked bodies of water such as ponds, canals, park wetlands and reservoirs. Fishing techniques inclu ...
that has been used throughout the world for millennia. Early civilizations were familiar with the custom of spearing fish from rivers and streams using sharpened sticks.
Today modern spearfishing makes use of elastic powered
speargun
A speargun is a ranged underwater fishing device designed to launch a tethered spear or harpoon to impale fish or other marine animals and targets. Spearguns are used in sport fishing and underwater target shooting. The two basic types are ''pn ...
s and slings, or compressed gas pneumatic powered spearguns, to strike the hunted fish. Specialised techniques and equipment have been developed for various types of aquatic environments and target fish. Spearfishing may be done using
free-diving
Freediving, free-diving, free diving, breath-hold diving, or skin diving is a form of underwater diving that relies on breath-holding until resurfacing rather than the use of breathing apparatus such as scuba gear.
Besides the limits of breath- ...
,
snorkelling
Snorkeling ( British and Commonwealth English spelling: snorkelling) is the practice of swimming on or through a body of water while equipped with a diving mask, a shaped breathing tube called a snorkel, and usually swimfins. In cooler waters, ...
, or
scuba diving
Scuba diving is a mode of underwater diving whereby divers use breathing equipment that is completely independent of a surface air supply. The name "scuba", an acronym for " Self-Contained Underwater Breathing Apparatus", was coined by Chr ...
techniques. Spearfishing while using scuba equipment is illegal in some countries. The use of mechanically powered spearguns is also outlawed in some countries and jurisdictions. Spearfishing is highly selective, normally uses no bait and has limited
by-catch
Bycatch (or by-catch), in the fishing industry, is a fish or other marine species that is caught unintentionally while fishing for specific species or sizes of wildlife. Bycatch is either the wrong species, the wrong sex, or is undersized or juve ...
.
Collection of shellfish
Some types of shellfish are collected by freediving. Examples include the historical recreational collection of
abalone in South Africa, before illegal harvesting reduced stocks to levels which resulted in recreational collection being banned indefinitely. This did not stop the illegal harvesting as it was very lucrative.
Competitive breath-hold watersports
Aquathlon
Aquathlon (also known as underwater wrestling) is an underwater sport where two competitors wearing masks and fins wrestle underwater in an attempt to remove a ribbon from each other's ankle band in order to win the bout. The "combat" takes place in a 5-metre (16 ft) square ring within a swimming pool, and is made up of three 30-second rounds, with a fourth round played in the event of a tie. The sport originated during the 1980s in the former USSR (now Russia) and was first played at international level in 1993. It was recognised by the Confédération Mondiale des Activités Subaquatiques (CMAS) in 2008.
Competitive spearfishing
Competitive spearfishing is defined by the world governing body
CMAS as "the hunting and capture of fish underwater without the aid of artificial breathing devices, using gear that depends entirely on the physical strength of the competitor." They publish a set of competition rules that are used by affiliated organisations.
Synchronised swimming
Synchronized swimming is a hybrid form of
swimming
Swimming is the self-propulsion of a person through water, or other liquid, usually for recreation, sport, exercise, or survival. Locomotion is achieved through coordinated movement of the limbs and the body to achieve hydrodynamic thrust that r ...
,
dance, and
gymnastics
Gymnastics is a type of sport that includes physical exercises requiring balance, strength, flexibility, agility, coordination, dedication and endurance. The movements involved in gymnastics contribute to the development of the arms, legs, s ...
, consisting of swimmers (either solos, duets, trios, combos, or teams) performing a synchronized routine of elaborate moves in the water, accompanied by music. Synchronized swimming demands advanced water skills, and requires great strength, endurance, flexibility, grace, artistry and precise timing, as well as exceptional breath control when upside down underwater. During lifts swimmers are not allowed to touch the bottom.
Traditionally it was a women's sport, but following the addition of a new mixed-pair event,
FINA World Aquatics competitions are open to men since
the 16th 2015 championships in Kazan, and the other international and national competitions allow male competitors in every event. However, men are currently still barred from competing in the Olympics. Both USA Synchro and Synchro Canada allow men to compete with women. Most European countries also allow men to compete, and France even allows male only podiums, according to the number of participants. In the past decade, more men are becoming involved in the sport and a global biannual competition called Men's Cup has been steadily growing.
Swimmers perform two routines for the judges, one technical and one free, as well as age group routines and figures. Synchronized swimming is both an individual and team sport. Swimmers compete individually during figures, and then as a team during the routine. Figures are made up of a combination of skills and positions that often require control, strength, and flexibility. Swimmers are ranked individually for this part of the competition. The routine involves teamwork and synchronization. It is choreographed to music and often has a theme. Synchronized swimming is governed internationally by
FINA
FINA (french: Fédération internationale de natation, en, International Swimming Federation, link=yes) (to be renamed as World Aquatics by ) is the international federation recognised by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) for administer ...
(Fédération Internationale de Natation).
Underwater hockey
Underwater Hockey
Underwater hockey (UWH), (also known as Octopush in the United Kingdom) is a globally played limited-contact sport in which two teams compete to manoeuvre a puck across the bottom of a swimming pool into the opposing team's goal by propelling ...
, (also called Octopush (mainly in the
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...
)) is a globally played limited-
contact sport
Contact sports are sports that emphasize or require physical contact between players. Some sports, such as mixed martial arts, are scored on impacting an opponent, while others, including rugby football, gridiron football and Australian rules fo ...
in which two teams compete to manoeuvre a
puck across the bottom of a
swimming pool into the opposing team's
goal
A goal is an idea of the future or desired result that a person or a group of people envision, plan and commit to achieve. People endeavour to reach goals within a finite time by setting deadlines.
A goal is roughly similar to a purpose or ...
by propelling it with a
pusher. It originated in
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
in 1954 when Alan Blake, the founder of the newly formed
Southsea
Southsea is a seaside resort and a geographic area of Portsmouth, Portsea Island in England. Southsea is located 1.8 miles (2.8 km) to the south of Portsmouth's inner city-centre. Southsea is not a separate town as all of Portsea Island's s ...
Sub-Aqua Club, invented the game he called Octopush as a means of keeping the club's members interested and active over the cold winter months when open-water diving lost its appeal.
Underwater Hockey is now played worldwide, with the
Confédération Mondiale des Activités Subaquatiques
Confédération Mondiale des Activités Subaquatiques (CMAS) is an international federation that represents underwater activities in underwater sport and underwater sciences, and oversees an international system of recreational snorkel and scu ...
, abbreviated CMAS, as the world governing body.
The first
Underwater Hockey World Championship was held in
Canada
Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...
in 1980 after a false start in 1979 brought about by international politics and apartheid.
Underwater football
Underwater football is a two-team
underwater sport that shares common elements with
underwater hockey
Underwater hockey (UWH), (also known as Octopush in the United Kingdom) is a globally played limited-contact sport in which two teams compete to manoeuvre a puck across the bottom of a swimming pool into the opposing team's goal by propelling ...
and
underwater rugby
Underwater rugby (UWR) is an underwater team sport. During a match two teams try to score a negatively buoyant ball (filled with saltwater) into the opponents’ goal at the bottom of a swimming pool. It originated from within the physical ...
. As with both of those games, it is played in a
swimming pool with
snorkeling
Snorkeling ( British and Commonwealth English spelling: snorkelling) is the practice of swimming on or through a body of water while equipped with a diving mask, a shaped breathing tube called a snorkel, and usually swimfins. In cooler waters ...
equipment (
mask
A mask is an object normally worn on the face, typically for protection, disguise, performance, or entertainment and often they have been employed for rituals and rights. Masks have been used since antiquity for both ceremonial and pra ...
,
snorkel, and
fins
A fin is a thin component or appendage attached to a larger body or structure. Fins typically function as foils that produce lift or thrust, or provide the ability to steer or stabilize motion while traveling in water, air, or other fluids. Fin ...
). The goal of the game is to
manoeuvre (by
carry
Carry or carrying may refer to:
People
*Carry (name)
Finance
* Carried interest (or carry), the share of profits in an investment fund paid to the fund manager
* Carry (investment), a financial term: the carry of an asset is the gain or cost of h ...
ing and
passing) a slightly
negatively buoyant ball from one side of a pool to the other by players who are completely submerged
underwater.
Scoring
Score or scorer may refer to:
*Test score, the result of an exam or test
Business
* Score Digital, now part of Bauer Radio
* Score Entertainment, a former American trading card design and manufacturing company
* Score Media, a former Canadian m ...
is achieved by placing the ball (under control) in the
gutter on the side of the pool. Variations include using a toy rubber torpedo as the ball, and weighing down buckets to rest on the bottom and serve as goals.
It is played in the Canadian provinces of
Alberta
Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest Ter ...
,
Manitoba
, image_map = Manitoba in Canada 2.svg
, map_alt = Map showing Manitoba's location in the centre of Southern Canada
, Label_map = yes
, coordinates =
, capital = Winn ...
,
Newfoundland and Labrador
Newfoundland and Labrador (; french: Terre-Neuve-et-Labrador; frequently abbreviated as NL) is the easternmost provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada, in the country's Atlantic Canada, Atlantic region. The province comprises t ...
, and
Saskatchewan
Saskatchewan ( ; ) is a province in western Canada, bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, to the northeast by Nunavut, and on the south by the U.S. states of Montana and North Dak ...
.
Underwater rugby
Underwater rugby
Underwater rugby (UWR) is an underwater team sport. During a match two teams try to score a negatively buoyant ball (filled with saltwater) into the opponents’ goal at the bottom of a swimming pool. It originated from within the physical ...
is an underwater team sport. During a match two teams try to score a negatively buoyant ball (filled with saltwater) into the opponents’ goal at the bottom of a swimming pool. It originated from within the physical fitness training regime existing in German diving clubs during the early 1960s and has little in common with rugby football except for the name. It was recognised by the
Confédération Mondiale des Activités Subaquatiques
Confédération Mondiale des Activités Subaquatiques (CMAS) is an international federation that represents underwater activities in underwater sport and underwater sciences, and oversees an international system of recreational snorkel and scu ...
(CMAS) in 1978 and was first played as a world championship in 1980.
Underwater target shooting
Underwater target shooting
Underwater Target Shooting is an underwater sport/shooting sport that tests a competitors’ ability to accurately use a speargun via a set of individual and team events conducted in a swimming pool using freediving or Apnoea technique. The spor ...
is an
underwater sport that tests a competitors’ ability to accurately use a
speargun
A speargun is a ranged underwater fishing device designed to launch a tethered spear or harpoon to impale fish or other marine animals and targets. Spearguns are used in sport fishing and underwater target shooting. The two basic types are ''pn ...
via a set of individual and team events conducted in a
swimming pool using
free diving
Freediving, free-diving, free diving, breath-hold diving, or skin diving is a form of underwater diving that relies on breath-holding until resurfacing rather than the use of breathing apparatus such as scuba gear.
Besides the limits of breath- ...
or apnea technique. The sport was developed in
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...
during the early 1980s and is currently practised mainly in
Europe
Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a subcontinent of Eurasia and it is located entirel ...
. It is known as ''Tir sur cible subaquatique'' in French and as ''Tiro al Blanco Subacuático'' in Spanish.
Competitive apnea
![Freediver-monofin-start-london-competition-2009](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/2b/Freediver-monofin-start-london-competition-2009.jpg)
Competitive freediving is currently governed by two world associations:
AIDA International
Association Internationale pour le Développement de l'Apnée (AIDA) (English: ''International Association for the Development of Apnea'') is a worldwide rule- and record-keeping body for competitive breath holding events, also known as freedivi ...
(International Association for Development of Apnea)
and
CMAS (Confédération Mondiale des Activités Subaquatiques – World Underwater Federation). Historically, there were two more organisations that regulated freediving records and activities -
IAFD
The Internet Adult Film Database (IAFD) is an online database of information pertaining to, in United States, the pornography industry: actors, actresses, directors, studios, distributors and pornographic films.
History
The predecessor to IAF ...
(International Association of Freedivers) and
FREE (Freediving Regulations and Education Entity).
Each organization has its own rules on recognizing a record attempt which can be found on the organization's website. Alongside ''competitive disciplines'' there are ''record disciplines'' - disciplines that are not held in competitions, that are just for setting world records. There is a third organization which in addition to AIDA and CMAS preside over those record disciplines and that is Guinness.
Almost all types of competitive freediving have in common that it is an individual sport based on the best individual achievement. Exceptions to this rule are the bi-annual World Championship for Teams held by AIDA, where the combined score of the team members makes up the team's total points and
Skandalopetra diving competitions held by CMAS, the only truly ‘team’ event in freediving - for which teams are formed by two athletes: one acting as an apneista (Voutichtis; diver) and the other acting as an assistant (Kolaouzeris; person who "extracts").
Disciplines
There are currently eleven recognized disciplines defined by AIDA and CMAS, and a dozen more that are only practiced locally. All disciplines can be practiced by both men and women and only CMAS currently separates records in fresh water from those at sea. The disciplines of AIDA can be done both in competition and as a record attempt, with the exception of Variable Weight and No limits, which are both solely for record attempts. For all AIDA depth disciplines, the depth the athlete will attempt is announced before the dive; this is accepted practice for both competition and record attempts. Most divers choose monofin over bifins where there is a choice.
![Herbert Nitsch](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/22/Herbert_Nitsch.jpg)
;Overview of the above disciplines
:BF =
Bifins, MF =
Monofin
A monofin is a type of swimfin typically used in underwater sports such as finswimming, free-diving and underwater orienteering. It consists of a single or linked surfaces attached to both of the diver's feet, emulating the fluke of Cetacean ...
World records
''Note 1: Best official result in STA is Guinness WR of 11:54 by Branko Petrović in 2014, a freediver who has results in STA over 10 minutes under both AIDA and CMAS.''
''Note 2: Best NLT result is 253.2m by Herbert Nitsch in 2012; intention of having the dive sanctioned by AIDA fell through due to a sponsoring conflict.''
''Note 3: After 2001-12-31 AIDA International no longer separated the records achieved in a lake from those in the sea.''
AIDA recognized world records
The
AIDA
''Aida'' (or ''Aïda'', ) is an opera in four acts by Giuseppe Verdi to an Italian libretto by Antonio Ghislanzoni. Set in the Old Kingdom of Egypt, it was commissioned by Cairo's Khedivial Opera House and had its première there on 24 Decemb ...
recognized world records are:
CMAS recognized world records
, the
CMAS recognized world records are:
Guinness recognized world records
''Note: Only those disciplines that are modifications of existing AIDA or CMAS disciplines and Guinness-exclusive (as it recognizes and inherits some AIDA/CMAS records) or Guinness-conceived (CMAS and AIDA do/did sanction at some time) disciplines.''
Recreational
![Free divers at the Blue Hole 2](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/cf/Free_divers_at_the_Blue_Hole_2.jpg)
Freediving as a recreational activity is widely practiced and differs significantly from
scuba diving
Scuba diving is a mode of underwater diving whereby divers use breathing equipment that is completely independent of a surface air supply. The name "scuba", an acronym for " Self-Contained Underwater Breathing Apparatus", was coined by Chr ...
. Although there are potential risks to all freediving, it can be safely practiced using a wide range of skill levels from the average snorkeler to the professional freediver. Compared to scuba diving, freediving offers:
* Freedom from cumbersome equipment and short preparation times.
* Low cost.
* It is quiet and does not disturb fish, the noise of breathing and bubbles can be quite loud on open circuit scuba though
rebreather
A rebreather is a breathing apparatus that absorbs the carbon dioxide of a user's breathing, exhaled breath to permit the rebreathing (recycling) of the substantially unused oxygen content, and unused inert content when present, of each breath. ...
s are much quieter.
* Mobility and speed, but for a much more limited period.
* No decompression time for deep dives, although it is possible to get decompression sickness, or
taravana, from repetitive deep free-diving with short surface intervals.
* The lack of exhaled air bubbles on ascent gives greater visibility on ascent.
* Accessibility, if the site can be walked to it can, potentially, be dived.
* Appropriately skilled and fit freedivers can go as deep, or deeper than, recreational scuba divers, the depth being limited only by the willingness to accept the risks; scuba diving is restricted by the level of certification.
Freshwater springs, often with excellent visibility, provide good freediving opportunities but with greater risks. Diving into spring caverns with restricted access to the surface is very different from diving in open water. The time available to a freediver to solve problems underwater before hypoxia sets in is severely restricted in comparison with scuba. Freediving into confined cave systems such as Eagle's Nest Cave, Florida and Blue Springs State Park, Florida has resulted in several deaths. Cave freediving is commonly discouraged in basic freediver safety training.
Physiology
The human body has several oxygen-conserving adaptations that manifest under diving conditions as part of the
mammalian diving reflex
The diving reflex, also known as the diving response and mammalian diving reflex, is a set of physiological responses to immersion that overrides the basic homeostatic reflexes, and is found in all air-breathing vertebrates studied to date. It o ...
. The adaptations include:
*
Reflex bradycardia
Reflex bradycardia is a bradycardia (decrease in heart rate) in response to the baroreceptor reflex, one of the body's homeostatic mechanisms for preventing abnormal increases in blood pressure. In the presence of high mean arterial pressure, t ...
: Significant drop in heart rate.
*
Blood-shift: Blood flow and volume is redistributed towards vital organs by means of a reflex vasoconstriction. Blood vessels distend and become engorged, which in the case of the pulmonary capillaries assists with pressure compensation that comes with increasing diving depth, and without which a largely air-filled chest cavity would simply collapse for lack of compliance.
* Body-cooling: peripheral
vasoconstriction
Vasoconstriction is the narrowing of the blood vessels resulting from contraction of the muscular wall of the vessels, in particular the large arteries and small arterioles. The process is the opposite of vasodilation, the widening of blood vess ...
results in cooling of peripheral tissue beds, which lower their oxygen demand in a thermodynamic manner. In addition, Murat et al. (2013) recently discovered that breath-holding results in prompt and substantial brain cooling, just like in diving birds and seals. (Dry) breath-holds result in cooling on the order of about 1 °C/minute, but this is likely to be greater with cold water submersion, in proportion to the magnitude and promptness of the dive response.
*
Splenic contraction
The spleen is an organ (biology), organ found in almost all vertebrates. Similar in structure to a large lymph node, it acts primarily as a blood filter. The word spleen comes . : Releasing red blood cells carrying oxygen.
Techniques
Breath-holding ability, and hence dive performance, is a function of on-board oxygen stores, scope for metabolic rate reduction, efficient oxygen utilization, and hypoxia tolerance.
Athletes attempt to accomplish this in various ways. Some divers use "packing", which increases lung volume beyond normal total lung capacity.
In addition, training is allocated to enhance blood and muscle oxygen stores, to a limited extent.
Most divers rely on increasing fitness by increasing lung capacity. Simple breath-holding practice is highly effective for increasing lung capacity. In an interview on the radio talk show
Fresh Air
''Fresh Air'' is an American radio talk show broadcast on National Public Radio stations across the United States since 1985. It is produced by WHYY-FM in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The show's host is Terry Gross. , the show was syndicated to ...
, journalist James Nestor, author of the book ''
Breath: The New Science of a Lost Art'',
stated: "Some divers have a lung capacity of 14 liters, which is about double the size for a typical adult male. They weren't born this way. ... They trained themselves to breathe in ways to profoundly affect their physical bodies."
Ascent
Training
Training for freediving can take many forms, some of which can be performed on land. The
University of Miami
The University of Miami (UM, UMiami, Miami, U of M, and The U) is a private research university in Coral Gables, Florida. , the university enrolled 19,096 students in 12 colleges and schools across nearly 350 academic majors and programs, i ...
presents a scientific freediving class that was developed by
Claire Paris, a professor and freediver, the class is the first of its kind at the university.
One example is the apnea walk. This consists of a preparation "breathe-up", followed by a short (typically 1 minute) breath hold taken at rest. Without breaking the hold, participants then begin walking as far as possible until it becomes necessary to breathe again. Athletes can do close to 400 meters in training this way.
This form of training is good for accustoming
muscles to work under
anaerobic
Anaerobic means "living, active, occurring, or existing in the absence of free oxygen", as opposed to aerobic which means "living, active, or occurring only in the presence of oxygen." Anaerobic may also refer to:
* Anaerobic adhesive, a bonding a ...
conditions, and for tolerance to
CO2 build-up in the circulation. It is also easy to gauge progress, as increasing distance can be measured.
Before competition attempts, freedivers perform a preparation sequence, which usually consists of physical stretching, mental exercise and breath exercise. It may include a succession of variable length static apnea and special purging deep breaths. Results of the preparation sequence are slower metabolism, lower heart rate and breath rate, and lower levels of carbon dioxide in the bloodstream
and overall mental equilibrium.
Safety
Hazards
The most obvious hazard is lack of access to air for breathing – a necessity for human life. This can result in
asphyxia
Asphyxia or asphyxiation is a condition of deficient supply of oxygen to the body which arises from abnormal breathing. Asphyxia causes generalized hypoxia, which affects primarily the tissues and organs. There are many circumstances that ca ...
from drowning if the diver does not reach the surface while still capable of holding their breath and resuming breathing. The risk depends on several factors, including the depth, duration and shape of the dive profile.
Latent hypoxia
Latent hypoxia is a condition where the oxygen content of the lungs and arterial blood is sufficient to maintain consciousness at a raised ambient pressure, but not when the pressure is reduced to normal atmospheric pressure. It usually occurs wh ...
is a specific hazard of deeper freedives. This effect can cause
hypoxic blackout during surfacing.
There are also a wide range of
environmental hazards
An environmental hazard is a substance, state or event which has the potential to threaten the surrounding natural environment or adversely affect people's health, including pollution and natural disasters such as storms and earthquakes. It can i ...
possible specific to the site and water and weather conditions at the time of diving, and there may be other hazards specific to the freediving activity.
Risk
Failing to respond to physiological warning signals, or crossing the mental barrier by strong will, may lead to
blackout underwater or on reaching the surface.
Trained freedivers are well aware of this and competitions must be held under strict supervision and with competent first-aiders on standby.
However, this does not eliminate the risk of blackout. Freedivers are encouraged by certification and sporting organisations to dive only with a 'buddy' who accompanies them, observing from in the water at the surface, and ready to dive to the rescue if the diver loses consciousness during the ascent. This is only reasonably practicable if the water clarity allows observation, and the buddy is capable of safely reaching the diver. Due to the nature of the sport, the risks of freediving can be reduced by strict adherence to safety measures as an integral part of the activity, but cannot be eliminated entirely. Competition rules may require all participants to be adept in rescue and resuscitation.
Statistics and notable accidents
Nicholas Mevoli
Nicholas Lawrence Mevoli III (August 22, 1981 – November 17, 2013) was an American freediver who died while attempting to set an American record at the Vertical Blue competition at Dean's Blue Hole in the Bahamas.
Early life
Mevoli was bo ...
, a diver from New York died on 17 November 2013 after losing consciousness on surfacing from a 3-minute 38 second dive to a depth of during an official record attempt in the "constant weight without fins" event. He had previously reached greater depths and longer times in other disciplines.
Fiction and documentaries
Documentaries
*''Ocean Men'' (2001) is a documentary film about the art and science of freediving, featuring two of its most outstanding exponents:
Francisco "Pipín" Ferreras and
Umberto Pelizzari
Umberto Pelizzari (born August 28, 1965) is an Italian freediver, widely considered among the best of all time. Of his era, he is the sole person to have established world records in all the then existing disciplines of freediving.
Early life ...
.
*''
My Pilot, Whale'' (2014) is a short documentary film directed by
Alexander and Nicole Gratovsky, demonstrating direct communication between a human and free
pilot whale
Pilot whales are cetaceans belonging to the genus ''Globicephala''. The two extant species are the long-finned pilot whale (''G. melas'') and the short-finned pilot whale (''G. macrorhynchus''). The two are not readily distinguishable at sea, ...
s in the open ocean. The entire underwater part was shot without underwater breathing equipment; both the operator and the person appearing in the frame are freediving.
Fiction
*In the film ''
Mission Impossible - Rogue Nation'', Tom Cruise plays super spy Ethan Hunt fighting the forces of evil, and goes freediving in a scene to expose the villains.
*''
The Pearl'' by
John Steinbeck (1947) is a novel about a poor pearl diver, Kino, who finds the 'Pearl of Heaven', which is exceptionally valuable, changing his life forever. The novel explores themes of man's nature as well as greed and evil.
*In ''
South Sea Adventure'' (1952) by
Willard Price
Willard DeMille Price (28 July 1887 – 14 October 1983) was a Canadian-born American traveller, journalist and author.
Early life
Price was born to a family of devout Methodists in Peterborough, Ontario. When he was four years old, his fat ...
the Hunt brothers, marooned on a coral island, use free diving to collect both pearls and fresh water.
*In
Ian Fleming's (1964)
James Bond
The ''James Bond'' series focuses on a fictional British Secret Service agent created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels and two short-story collections. Since Fleming's death in 1964, eight other authors have ...
novel ''
You Only Live Twice'', the character
Kissy Suzuki
Kissy Suzuki is a fictional character introduced in Ian Fleming's 1964 ''James Bond'' novel, '' You Only Live Twice''. Despite Bond's womanizing, Kissy Suzuki (at least the literary version) remains the only character known to the reader who bear ...
is an
ama diver. This connection was also mentioned in the
film version
A film adaptation is the transfer of a work or story, in whole or in part, to a feature film. Although often considered a type of derivative work, film adaptation has been conceptualized recently by academic scholars such as Robert Stam as a dia ...
.
*''
Man from Atlantis
''Man from Atlantis'' is a short-lived American science fiction/fantasy television series that ran for 13 episodes on the NBC network during the 1977–78 season, following four television films that had aired earlier in 1977. Ratings success by ...
'' was a 1970s TV series which featured a
superhero with the ability to breathe underwater and freedive in his own special way.
*''
The Big Blue
''The Big Blue'' (released in some countries under the French title ''Le Grand Bleu'') is a 1988 film in the French ''Cinéma du look'' visual style, made by French director Luc Besson. It is a heavily fictionalized and dramatized story of th ...
'' (1988) is a romantic film about two world-class freedivers, a heavily fictionalized depiction of the rivalry of freedivers
Jacques Mayol
Jacques Mayol (1 April 1927 – 22 December 2001) was a French diver and the holder of many world records in free diving. The 1988 film ''The Big Blue'', directed by Luc Besson, was inspired by his life story and that of his friend, Enzo Maiorca. ...
and
Enzo Maiorca
Enzo Maiorca (21 June 1931 – 13 November 2016) was an Italian free diver who held several world freediving records. Born Vincenzo Maiorca on 21 June 1931 in Syracuse, Sicily, he died on 13 November 2016 in the same city.
Biography
Maiorca was ...
.
*In the movie ''Phoenix Blue'' (2001), protagonist Rick is a musician who freedives competitively.
*The children's novel ''
The Dolphins of Laurentum'' by Caroline Lawrence (2003), which takes place in ancient Rome, describes the applications of freediving (sponge and pearl diving) and its hazards, as one of the principal characters, as well as the main antagonist, try to beat each other to a sunken treasure.
*''
The Freediver'' (2004) is a film about a talented female freediver who is discovered and brought to an island, where she is trained by an ambitious scientist to break a freediving world record currently held by an American woman.
*In the film ''
Into the Blue'' (2005) starring
Jessica Alba
Jessica Marie Alba ( ; born April 28, 1981) is an American actress and businesswoman. She began her television and movie appearances at age 13 in '' Camp Nowhere'' and '' The Secret World of Alex Mack'' (1994), and rose to prominence at age 19 ...
, a group of divers find themselves in deep trouble with a drug lord after they come upon the illicit cargo of a sunken airplane in the Caribbean. Jessica Alba is an accomplished freediver, and did much of the underwater work; some other stunts were performed by
Mehgan Heaney-Grier.
*In
Greg Iles
Greg Iles (born 1960) is a novelist who lives in Mississippi. He has published seventeen novels and one novella, spanning a variety of genres.
Early life
Iles was born in 1960 in Stuttgart, West Germany, where his physician father ran the US Emb ...
' novel ''Blood Memory'' (2005), the main character Cat Ferry is an
odontologist
Dentistry, also known as dental medicine and oral medicine, is the branch of medicine focused on the teeth, gums, and mouth. It consists of the study, diagnosis, prevention, management, and treatment of diseases, disorders, and conditions of ...
and a freediver.
*''
H2O: Just Add Water'' Series 3 added a freediver (Will Benjamin played by
Luke Mitchell
Luke Mitchell (born 17 April 1985) is an Australian actor and model. He attended the Film and Television Studio International and won the role of Chris Knight in ''Neighbours''. He joined the cast of '' Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.'' as the ...
) as a regular. Freediving is featured in some episodes.
*''
The Greater Meaning of Water'' (2010) is an independent film about competitive constant weight freediving, focusing on the 'zen' of freediving.
*In the
Canadian
Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...
television series
A television show – or simply TV show – is any content produced for viewing on a television set which can be broadcast via over-the-air, satellite, or cable, excluding breaking news, advertisements, or trailers that are typically placed be ...
''
Corner Gas
''Corner Gas'' is a Canadian television sitcom created by Brent Butt. The series ran for six seasons from 2004 to 2009. Re-runs still air on CTV, CTV2, CTV Comedy Channel, Much, MTV, E! and are streaming on Crave and Amazon Prime. The seri ...
'', the character Karen Pelly (
Tara Spencer-Nairn) competed in static apnea, ranking fifth in Canada with a personal best of over six minutes.
*In the
American television series
A television show – or simply TV show – is any content produced for viewing on a television set which can be broadcast via over-the-air, satellite, or cable, excluding breaking news, advertisements, or trailers that are typically placed be ...
''
Baywatch
''Baywatch'' is an American action drama television series about lifeguards who patrol the beaches of Los Angeles County, California, and Hawaii, starring David Hasselhoff. It was created by Michael Berk, Douglas Schwartz, and Gregory J. Bo ...
'' episode "The Chamber" (Session 2, Episode 17), the character
Mitch Buchannon rescues a diver trapped 90 feet below the ocean surface, but almost dies while suffering the effects of
decompression sickness
Decompression sickness (abbreviated DCS; also called divers' disease, the bends, aerobullosis, and caisson disease) is a medical condition caused by dissolved gases emerging from solution as bubbles inside the body tissues during decompressio ...
; decompression sickness is highly improbable following freediving exposure to this depth.
*In the book ''
Hornblower and the Atropos
''Hornblower and the Atropos'' is a 1953 historical novel by C.S. Forester.
Horatio Hornblower is posted to HMS ''Atropos'', the smallest vessel in the Royal Navy that merits command by a post-captain, as he salvages treasure from the Mediterra ...
'',
CS Forester's character
Horatio Hornblower is tasked by the
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against ...
to retrieve sunken treasure with the help of freediving
Sinhalese
Sinhala may refer to:
* Something of or related to the Sinhalese people of Sri Lanka
* Sinhalese people
* Sinhala language, one of the three official languages used in Sri Lanka
* Sinhala script, a writing system for the Sinhala language
** Sinha ...
pearl divers
Pearl hunting, also known as pearling, is the activity of recovering pearls from wild molluscs, usually oysters or mussels, in the sea or freshwater. Pearl hunting was prevalent in the Persian Gulf region and Japan for thousands of years. On t ...
See also
*
*
*
*
*
*
References
Further reading
*DeeperBlue.com (2016) ''The Beginners Guide to Freediving'', published b
DeeperBlue.com*Callagy, Feargus (2012) ''A Beginners Guide to Freediving'', e-book published b
DeeperBlue.com
*Donald, Ian (2013) ''Underwater foraging – Freediving for food'', Createspace publishing, USA.
*
Farrell, Emma (2006) ''One Breath: A Reflection on Freediving'', photographs by Frederic Buyle, Pynto Ltd., Hatherley, UK:
*
Pelizzari, Umberto & Tovaglieri, Stefano (2001) ''Manual of Freediving: Underwater on a single breath'', English translation 2004 by Idelson-Gnocchi Ltd., Reddick, FL:
*
Severinsen, Stig A. (2010) ''Breathology: The Art of Conscious Breathing'', Idelson-Gnocchi Ltd., Reddick, FL:
*
James Nestor
James Nestor is an author and journalist who has written for Outside (magazine), ''Outside'', ''Scientific American'', ''Dwell (magazine), Dwell'', National Public Radio, ''The New York Times'', ''The Atlantic'', ''Men's Journal,'' the ''San Fra ...
(2015) "Deep: Freediving, Renegade Science, and What the Ocean Tells Us About Ourselves", Eamon Dolan/Mariner Books New York, NY:
External links
AIDA InternationalCollaborative cartography of freediving spots/Cartographie collaborative des spots apnéeDeeperBlue websiteThe Beginners Guide to Freediving- published by DeeperBlue.com
FreedivingCourses.com- a way to find Freediving instructors and dive centers around the world
DiveWise.Org- non profit organization dedicated to freediving education and safety
Explore Freediving- Freediving and Snorkeling events and instructor directory
Freediving Spots Borgosub.fr French association to promote Wreck freediving
Freitauchen-lernen.com- deutschsprachiger Freediving Blog
www.apnoetauchen-lernen.de- German Center for education and development of freediving.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Free Diving
Individual sports
Underwater sports