William Trubridge wasn’t satisfied with breaking the world record for the deepest dive without fins and oxygen for the 16th time, so he went and did it again.
The 35-year-old from New Zealand held the record at 122 meters in the free immersion category of free diving where divers pull themselves down a weighted line without fins. Trubridge then broke the record again descending two meters further to 124 meters in what’s known as the Dean’s Blue Hole in the Bahamas.
This incredible natural feature is the staging ground for the annual Vertical Blue diving competition. Trubridge owns a local diving school of the same name, which sponsors the competition. The intrepid free diver also holds the record for the “constant weight, no fins” category where you don’t wear fins or pull along a rope. There is one other category where competitors do wear fins.
On Monday, Trubridge posted a report of his accomplished to Facebook with a video from the 122 meters. In the clip you see him calmly glide down the weighted line descending into this amazing cavern until surrounded by darkness. Documentation of the new record-breaker is expected soon.
ALSO READ: Why Free Diving Should be Your Next Sport
While free diving has been gaining popularity in recent years, concerns have spread over its safety. American diver Nicholas Mevoli, 32, died during a record-breaking attempt at Vertical Blue in 2013, and the Russian diver Natalia Mochanova, 53, a celebrated athlete in the sport disappeared during a dive in Spain.
