Danish freediver Stig Severinsen has smashed the existing Guinness World Record in longitudinal swimming underwater with a 202.0-meter (662.73-foot) swim in the Sea of Cortez off Mexico.
With the feat, Severinsen adds a full pool length of 25 meters (82 feet) to Venezuelan Carlos Coste’s record of 177 meters (581 feet), which he set four years ago at the age of 40. Coste himself has held the record since 2010.
Unlike the more traditional freediving world records completed in pools, the Guinness World Record was set in open water off Balandra Beach in Mexico. The current equivalent pool freediving record is 300 meters (984 feet)
Severinsen will turn 48 in a couple of months, and should therefore not be able to compete with freediving’s younger world players. However, the year 2020 has brought something to life in him:
“I have long been looking for an opportunity to strike a blow for our planet and remind us how we should treat it. The place where the dive took place in Mexico belongs to one of the world’s most unique and beautiful coastal areas. Like many other places, it is threatened by plastic pollution and the human lifestyle in general.
“When the world was hit by Covid-19 almost a year ago, I was looking for a way to show that the pandemic was not an excuse to forget our priorities for nature or put our ambitions on standby. On the contrary. That is why I have spent the time training and developing both myself and my message.”
To break the record, Severinsen initiated an intense training regime, consisting of both physical and meditative development.
“My message is that the globe is an amazing place and that our body together with our brain can achieve the most incredible things. Rather than allowing ourselves to be paralyzed by fear, we must continue the human endeavors. But it must be done in harmony with nature – not against it. When we forget the fear and choose the action, we ourselves are masters of our destiny.”
The record has been approved by Guinness World Records.
Check out the video from the attempt below or on YouTube.
