For several years, CAFA and it’s governing board and members have been planning to host an international freediving event. The Canadian Association of Freediving and Apnea (CAFA) is putting together it’s bid to host the AIDA 2004 World Team Championships in Vancouver, Canada.
This preliminary bid proposal is to outline the date, location, time frame and initial schedule, accommodations and housing and a rough estimate of the athletes registration fees. We’ll give another update every two weeks up until the end of September when all final bid proposals will be completed and the vote by the AIDA Assembly will take place. Within our on-line proposal, we’ll cover the following; introduction, setting, organizer, itinerary, constant ballast, static apnea, dynamic apnea, accommodation, cost and links.
Vancouver is located on the west coast of Canada in the province of British Columbia where in the summer we enjoy a very sunny, warm and hospitable environment. Vancouver is the third largest and most beautiful of Canada’s cities and for those who have traveled to Vancouver, one of the most beautiful cities in the world. Vancouver provides a multitude of vistas and outdoor environments from world class
skiing and winter sports (Vancouver recently won the 2010 Winter Olympic bid), to amazing hiking and mountain biking, along with beautiful sailing, boating, white water and ocean kayaking, to the best scuba diving in the world as recently reported by Rodale’s Magazine.
Our waters in August can reach over 20 degrees C with an average around 16-17 degrees C. Large kelp forests, Seals, Orca, giant Pacific Octopus, bright and brilliant soft and some hard corals and sponges along with one of the world most prolific artificial reefs make up the waters around Vancouver Island and British Columbia. Our waters can be very conducive to freediving and the 82m AIDA constant ballast world
record proves this alone. Our biggest challenge is the tidal exchange and we’ve selected the week of August 4th – 12th where little to no tidal exchange is a concern.
The University of British Columbia (UBC) will be the host of the attending teams with all facilities located on the campus except for the constant ballast competition. Accommodations are apartment style with kitchens, a bedroom per athlete, laundry facilities and many stores, restaurants and fitness facilities nearby. From accommodations to the pool is less than a five minute walk and we’re sure you’ll be extremely excited with this venue as it provides many beaches, nature walks and facilities within a short walk of the campus. A scenic view of the ocean is available from the apartments and we are planning several non-training events to show you the many beautiful and fun activities available to you during your stay.
We hope you enjoy our bid over the next several months and ask that you continue to watch our website while you seriously consider a AIDA World Championships in Vancouver. Try something new and let us welcome you, our freediving friends, to show you the beauty and hospitality that Vancouver and Canadians are famous for.
Detailed information can be found at www.freedivecanada.com
