World Champion French freediver Guillaume Néry has announced on social media that he has withdrawn from competing in the AIDA Depth Freediving World Championships, currently occurring in France, after only 4 days of competition.
His Facebook post announced his withdrawal in French and English:
“It is with great sadness that I announce my withdrawal from the AIDA World Championships currently taking place in @villefranchesurmer. For personal reasons, I am currently not in the mental or physical shape required for such deep diving. I really want to congratulate my friends in the French team who are doing an exceptional job since the beginning of the competition.
Also, I would like to thank all my friends at @cipafreediving with whom we enjoyed a great friendship throughout the preparation for this competition as well as all my partners for their uncompromising support@panerai @cressi1946 @oleg_pudov @jeanchabaud @octopus_freediving
Back to you soon for new adventures!”
Néry had previously announced his retirement from competitive freediving in 2015 after a line error prior to the World Championships had caused him to dive 10m deeper than he was expecting, caused a lung squeeze and he blacked out upon surfacing.
The Freediving world was excited when it was announced back in January he was returning to compete in the AIDA Depth Freediving World Championships this September.