New Zealand's freedivers prepare for pool comp

Posted By Sara-Lise Haith on Tuesday May 6, 2008 @ 16:38 in FreeDiving

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Tucked away on the first daybreak line of our earth, New Zealand freedivers prepare for the Apneist’s Challenge to be held in Wellington.  The freediving competitions held in New Zealand are not to be snuffed at.  New Zealand is known for its cold climatic conditions in the winter season and the tough New Zealanders have staged competitions in at Lake Taupo, at high altitude.  Taupo is known as an area where other extreme sports are practiced, and has the largest commercial tandem skydive drop zone in the world. Lake Taupo reaches some 160 metres in depth (maximum 186.8m below chart datum) and the New Zealanders go there to train in the warmer months.  The surface temperature in the coldest winter has reached 10°C and the summer average 18°C (up to 25°C in shallows in summer). It is not for the faint hearted.  In spite of these conditions, New Zealand’s top divers set three new National Records in the Constant Weight discipline in the last competition.

The competition held at Taupo, named Apnea at Altitude (the district of Lake Taupo is 370 metres above sea level), puts divers under abnormal dive conditions due to the effects of training under reduced barometric pressure and lower oxygen levels.  It is thought that freediving athletes who dive under these conditions will have a higher concentration of red blood cells for 10-14 days, giving them a competitive advantage. 

The upcoming competition to be held in Wellington is a pool competition with Static and Dynamic Apnea as the competing disciplines.  Entries for the competition have just closed and there are 10 competitors: Chris Marshall, Clemens Neumann (from Berlin), Craig Young, Gavin Gray, Guy Brew, Kerian Hibbs, Marcus Thompson, Phil Clayton, Ruth Griffin (UK) and Kathryn McPhee.  A need for more female competitors is evident.  The competition runs from 10 to 11 May at the Porirua Pool, Wellington.  More information and results can be found on www.lazyseal.co.nz.