Brazilian freediver Carolina Schrappe broke her own South American variable weight (VW) record with a 101-meter/331-foot dive at the Bonaire Deepsea Challenge, which took place from September 15th through the 25th.
Schrappe bested her previous record from last year, which was 95 meters/312 feet. Her new record was confirmed by AIDA judges Gaby Contreras from Venezuela and Christian Statler from Austria.
Schrappe’s feat was done in parallel to the main competition, which featured athletes from Japan, Ukraine, the Netherlands, Brazil, the U.K. and Venezuela competing in four disciplines with no maximum depth: Static (STA), Constant Weight (CWT), Constant No Fins (CNF) and Free Immersion (FIM). Schrappe herself came in third place overall in those disciplines.
Notable performances from the event included dives from Japan’s Tomoka Fukuda, who reached 92 meters/302 feet in the Constant Weight discipline and a 5-minute, 21-second breath hold that assured her title as Best Female Athlete of the competition.
Venezuela’s Israel Gil surprised attendees showing consistency among all disciplines, positioning him as Best Male Athlete after achieving some of his personal bests. They both received an underwater watch courtesy of event sponsor Cressi. Ekateryna Sadurska from Ukraine took second place among the women, and Leon Jansen from the Netherlands and Martyn Bromley from the U.K. took second and third place among the men, respectively.
The event’s closing ceremony featured an “Ocean Parade” as well as the beginning of the Caribbean Mermaid Festival that included mermaiding workshops with advice from professional freedivers about the correct technique to breathe and swim with a monofin like a mermaid.
Photos courtesy of DenGC Photos. Check out his Facebook Page & Website
