Have you ever dreamed of passively exploring the underwater world free of equipment? Freediving is the ultimate way to liberate yourself underwater and is one of the fastest growing watersports in the UAE.
Anyone who has held their breath underwater has freedived. However, freediving is not simply about seeing how long you can hold your breath or how deep you can go on a single breath – it’s a bit more zen than that. ‘We teach our students the right attitude and attention to their body and mind so that they can dive comfortably holding their breath’ says Alex Boulting AIDA instructor and co-founder of FreedivingUAE. ‘The true appeal of Freediving is in the silence and calm it brings to people’s lives’ he adds.
Ever since he was a young boy growing up in the UAE, Adel Abu Haliqa, also an AIDA instructor and co-founder of FreedivingUAE, has had recurring dreams of being able to breathe underwater and swim with the fish – this is what inspired him to first take up scuba diving and, subsequently, the purer discipline of freediving. Now the UAE National Freediving Champion, Adel has become increasingly passionate about the sport since being introduced to it in 2006, saying that it “allows me to be at one with the underwater world and myself.” FreedivingUAE was created in 2009 to raise the profile of the sport in the UAE because it has such a strong connection with the heritage of pearl diving in the UAE. FreedivingUAE run freediving courses and trips every month and are starting to create a large community of freedivers with over 50 active members. With water temperatures of over 300C the UAE is the perfect place for all-yearround freediving.
As well as the perfect way to relax at the weekend freediving is an international competitive sport. Professional freedivers exploit the bodies’ diving adaptations to go to depths of over 200m on a single breath. These diving reflexes help conserve oxygen by restricting the blood flow to your extremities conserving it for your vital organs. FreedivingUAE are also putting the UAE on the international freediving map by organising world champion freedivers to visit the country and run clinics. The next clinic will be a monofining course where Mike Maric, World Champion Freediver, and Valter Mazzei the Italian freediving national team coach will be teaching the art of monofining and how to swim like a dolphin.
E-mail contactus@freedivinguae.com or visit www.freedivinguae. com. If by chance you are upgrading your pool deck then it really is in your best interest to check it out since they are having a contest giving out pool prices.
Alex Boulting www.freedivinguae.com
QUICK FREEDIVING OVERLOOK
Competitive freediving comprises eight disciplines:
Static Apnea (STA) The diver holds their breath, floating face-down in a swimming pool – essentially a mind game where the freediver is trying to control their urge to breathe. Current world record: 11 minutes 35 seconds
Dynamic Apnea with Fins (DYN) The diver swims horizontally under water in a swimming pool using fins (usually a monofin) to see how far they can travel on one breath. Current world record: 250 metres
Dynamic Apnea without Fins (DNF) The diver swims horizontally under water in a swimming pool with no propulsion aids to see how far they can travel on one breath. Current world record: 213 metres
Constant Weight with Fins (CWT) The diver must descend and ascend in open water (usually the sea) kicking and completely unassisted. The diver may wear weight, but whatever is taken down must be returned to the surface. This is seen as the truest form of freediving and the toughest. Current world record: 124 metres
Constant Weight without fins (CNF) As above, but with no propulsion aid. Current world record: 94 metres
Free Immersion The diver must descend and ascend by pulling on the dive line. Weight may be worn, but this is simply a variation of the constant weight category so the diver must return to the surface with the same amount of weight used for the descent. No fins are worn. Current world record: 120 metres
Variable Weight The diver descends with the assistance of ballast and returns to the surface under his or her own power, either kicking and/or pulling on the rope. Current world record: 142 metres
No Limits The deepest free dives in history are made in this category. Here the diver uses a weighted sled, descending at a rate of 3-4 meters/second. Ascent is assisted by an air-filled balloon or other lifting device, which the diver usually has to manually activate upon arrival at depth. Current word record: 214 metres
