There
are five main disciplines of competitive free diving.
The first is Constant Weight
diving. With one breath of air and the help of masks,
fins, wetsuit and weights, you have to swim both down underwater
and back upwards without any help from external devices.
This is the purest form of free diving that most divers
practice (other than skin diving). Spear fishing, underwater
photography, sightseeing and mono-fin diving are all based
on this technique. This style of diving is the focus of
many international freediving competitions. For the average
free diver, including myself, constant weight diving is
all I would ever attempt.
In
Variable Weight diving: with
a single breath and the appropriate gear, one descends
by a sleigh loaded up to a maximum of 30-kg (approx. 66
lbs) along a rope. You have to swim upwards on your own
but you are allowed to use the rope as a help. Therefore,
the distinguishing characteristic of variable weight diving
is as the name suggests: you can descend with a different
weight than what you use during your ascent.
No
Limit free diving is the most dangerous of all
the free diving disciplines. The deep-diver descends along
a rope with the aid of a 60-kg loaded sleigh. On the ascent,
the diver is drawn towards
the surface with an air balloon. This type of free diving
requires little to no physical activity and is focused
on the ability of the diver to cope with the extreme water
pressure at depth as well as descending and ascending
as quickly as possible while holding ones' breath. No Limit
free diving is not approved as a competitive discipline
due to its inherent danger and, therefore, it is more of
an exhibition sport for free diving extremist. However,
while I don't approve of no limit free diving, I am fascinated
at the extent of human abilities. On January 18th, 2000,
Francisco "Pipin" Ferreira Rodrigues established
an amazing new record. He plunged to a depth of 162 meters
(534.6 feet) with only one breath. This feat took place
in Cozumel, Mexico January 18, 2000.
Static Apnea deals with
breath holding in a pool. You take a deep breath, lay
in the pool with your face down in the water, and hold
your breath for as long time as possible. Wetsuits,
masks and weights are allowed. Andy Le Sauce of
France holds this record with a brain cell killer of
7 minutes and 35 seconds (1995).
The
last discipline is Dynamic Apnea.
After one deep breath you swim as far as you can lengthways
under water. The most common way is to do this in a pool.
s
the surface with an air balloon. This type of free diving
requires little to no physical activity and is focused
on the ability of the diver to cope with the extreme water
pressure at depth as well as descending and ascending
as quickly as possible while holding ones' breath. No Limit
free diving is not approved as a competitive discipline
due to its inherent danger and, therefore, it is more of
an exhibition sport for free diving extremist. However,
while I don't approve of no limit free diving, I am fascinated
at the extent of human abilities. On January 18th, 2000,
Francisco "Pipin" Ferreira Rodrigues established
an amazing new record. He plunged to a depth of 162 meters
(534.6 feet) with only one breath. This feat took place
in Cozumel, Mexico January 18, 2000. 
