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Five Freediving World Records Attempted In Cayman Islands
Friday, April 8th through Thursday, April 14th, five freediving world records are poised to fall in the Cayman Islands with members of the Performance Freediving Team.
Freediving or breath-hold diving as a sport is where athletes compete in disciplines involving time, depth and distance with different sub categories in each. The competitive world of freediving emerged in the late 1940's and today is enjoying unprecedented growth and booming popularity with underwater enthusiasts the world over. Although freediving as a sport is relatively new, freediving as a means of sustenance can trace its roots back 4500 years.
Mandy-Rae Cruickshank of Canada and Martin Stepanek of Czech Republic have been training in the Cayman Islands since March 14th in an attempt to break five freediving world records. Mandy-Rae will be attempting three different disciplines while Martin will be attempting two.
Mandy-Rae is thirty years old and resides in Vancouver, Canada. Freediving competitively since 2000, Mandy-Rae has held four world records and currently holds the constant ballast world record where an athlete swims to depth and back with fins and retains their ballast. In March 2004 in Grand Cayman she achieved a depth of 78m / 256ft surpassing Tanya Streeter's record of 70m / 230ft.
Joining Mandy-Rae is team member Martin Stepanek of the Czech Republic. Martin is twenty-eight years old and a five time world record holder currently holding two world records also including constant ballast at 103m / 338ft surpassing Carlos Costa's record of 102m / 335ft.
Both Mandy-Rae and Martin are working with coach and trainer Kirk Krack, founder of Performance Freediving International Inc. Kirk is also Vice-President of the Association for the International Development of Apnea (AIDA), the world governing body for the sport of freediving. AIDA Level A Judges Bill Stromberg (Sweden) and Nicolas Laporte (Switzerland) will be the officials in attendance ratifying the attempts and ensuring the strictest of safety protocols are followed.
Partnering with Performance Freediving International is Dr. George 'Doc' Lopez, CEO of ICU Medical Inc (NASDAQ; ICUI). Doc is joining Mandy and Martin in Cayman for his second year and is again attempting a US National record for the United States Apnea Association (USAA). Doc, a highly successful CEO is also a bluewater world record spearfishermen.
Along with ICU Medical Inc, Divetech and Cobalt Coast on Grand Cayman are providing diving and accommodations while Off The Wall Divers provides a daily training boat. Underwater video services are provided by Amphibico Inc of Montreal, Canada. Professional wetsuits are furnished by Oceaner Sporting Goods and Yamamoto Corporation.
Full streaming video, daily diaries and pictures are available at www.performancefreediving.com.
