New Zealand freediver William Trubridge has set a new 122m world depth record in the Free Immersion (FIM) discipline. His 4min 24sec dive came as part of the annual Vertical Blue competition at Dean’s Blue Hole in the Bahamas.
The record, Trubridge’s 16th, beat by 1m his own existing record. In Free Immersion – the most relaxing freediving discipline, according to the sport’s governing body AIDA – the finless diver pulls on a line to descend and ascend.
Trubridge also holds the world Constant Weight No-Fins (CNF) record of 101m. Reckoned to be the most difficult discipline, the diver has the benefit of neither fins nor pulling on a line. A women’s CNF world record of 72m had already been set earlier in the Vertical Blue competition by Sayuri Kinoshita.
The annual event is run by Trubridge’s own company, and his record was set on Day 7. “The dive itself was pretty difficult,” he said afterwards. After a “beautiful” descent he faced unexpected problems attaching the tag, and by the time he succeeded “I was completely out of the headspace that I need to be in for a deep dive.
“I was a little concerned – at one point I didn’t know how deep I was, I didn’t even know if I was going to make it to my safety divers,” said Trubridge. “I didn’t feel that strong but gradually I started to come back and made it to the surface.”
He was due to try to break the record again on the final day (Tuesday) with a 124m bid.
Watch a Vertical Blue video about the 122m record dive at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H3BUVH8X5Yw
02-May-16
