The 2025 CMAS World Championships in Freediving Depth in Mytikas, Greece, were meant to showcase the best in the sport. Instead, they have been overshadowed by a series of medical incidents, athlete withdrawals, and growing questions over whether safety standards at the event are fundamentally broken.
A Medical Emergency That Changed the Mood
The turning point came on 6 September, when Russian freediver Andrey Matveenko surfaced from a training dive to around 126.5m (415ft). He suffered a blackout near the surface, briefly regained responsiveness after rescue intervention, but then deteriorated rapidly with neurological symptoms, including paralysis on his right side.
RELATED: Russian Freediver Andrey Matveenko Suffers Serious Medical Emergency at CMAS World Championships
Initial evacuation took him to Lefkada Hospital, which does not have a hyperbaric chamber. Hours later, he was moved to the Athens Naval Hospital, where he received only a single chamber treatment before being returned to Lefkada.
The following day, as his condition failed to improve, fellow athletes arranged a private transfer to Cyprus, but eventually, the Athens Naval Hospital agreed to treat Matveenko in their chamber.
He was eventually transferred back to the Athens Naval Hospital, where he continued to undergo further hyperbaric therapy and treatment.
There is some debate among athletes on whether it was Decompression Sickness (DCS) or Cerebral Arterial Gas Embolism (CAGE). In both conditions, the speed of treatment is a key factor in recovery, and the use of a hyperbaric chamber is critical.
In a formal message shared with athletes, Dr. Fernando “Bizo” Silva, a Freediving athlete and ER Doctor, stressed that “in cases of CAGE, the response time must be the same as for a stroke.” For many competitors, the delay in definitive care highlighted the fragility of the competition’s emergency plans.
Carrera and Butera: More Incidents in the Same Week
Matveenko’s case was not isolated. Italian champion Davide Carrera confirmed to DeeperBlue.com that he suffered a minor DCS incident during a 115m (377ft) training dive. After initial in-water recompression, he was taken to the hospital, treated, and fully recovered – but has since withdrawn from the competition.
More troubling still, Roberto Butera, Head of Safety for the event, developed decompression-related symptoms during operations. According to accounts from those present, he underwent in-water recompression on oxygen before being transferred for further treatment. He recovered, but the incident raised difficult questions: if the senior safety officer is at risk, what margin remains for the rest of the team?
Athletes also reported – though without confirmation – that other safety divers experienced symptoms after repeated deep scooter runs, with some performing dozens of dives to around 40m (131ft) in a single day.
Plans on Paper, Chaos in Practice
The official safety protocol set out a detailed evacuation chain: RIB to Lygia, ambulance to Lefkada, helicopter to either Thessaloniki or Athens, and finally a receiving chamber. Estimated times were 2 hours 45 minutes to 3 hours 20 minutes under ideal conditions.
In practice, no helicopter was available, and athletes describe improvised overland transfers instead. Several athletes and team doctors questioned whether the plan was ever realistic, given the limited regional resources.
Lessons From Last Year, Ignored
After the 2024 CMAS World Championships, athletes were surveyed on safety. The CMAS report gave medical standards a score of 5.56/10, DCS procedures 5.51/10, and recommended faster chamber access, clearer protocols, and better communication.
A year later, many of the same weaknesses appear to have resurfaced. Despite producing written improvements, the reality on the water in Greece fell short of expectations.
Silence From Above
DeeperBlue.com contacted both the CMAS President and the event organizer for comment, but had received no response at the time of publishing. Neither CMAS President Anna Arzhanova nor the local organiser has addressed athletes’ concerns in public.
Athletes Take Action
In the absence of clarity, athletes themselves have been making statements.
- Petar Klovar wrote an email directly to CMAS officials requesting to be removed from all future competitions, citing “extremely poor management” of this year’s event.
- Davide Carrera, as noted, has withdrawn following his DCS incident.
- Several others, including Talya Davidoff, Zsofia Torocsik, and Sanda Delija, have also stepped back in protest at how the championships have been managed.
For some, the issue is no longer this single competition but trust in CMAS itself.
Liability Forms and Athlete Pressure
Safety concerns have not been limited to medical incidents. Athletes reported being presented with new liability forms midway through the event. DeeperBlue.com has seen copies of both the original, later withdrawn, disclaimer and the pre-dive indemnity documents.
The updated forms go significantly further, expanding legal waivers, indemnity obligations, and arbitration clauses. Several athletes say they were asked to sign these on the boat before diving, raising the question of whether consent given under such conditions is truly voluntary. There has also been confusion on whether these are new forms or part of the pre-competition pack issued to athletes.
A Revised Protocol, Too Late
On Thursday, 11 September, a new safety protocol document was circulated to athletes via the official WhatsApp group. While it clarified evacuation routes and timings, concerns remained that core issues – on-site chamber access, helicopter availability, oxygen positioning, and safety diver workload – were still unresolved.
A System Under Strain
Taken together, the picture is troubling:
- A top athlete was paralysed after delayed treatment.
- Another champion is suffering from DCS.
- The Head of Safety requires in-water recompression.
- Rumoured safety diver DCS incidents.
- Liability waivers changed or were introduced mid-event.
- A revised safety protocol was issued after incidents had already occurred.
- And silence from CMAS leadership.
For many athletes, this is more than a run of bad luck. It points to structural issues in how freediving competitions are planned and delivered at the highest level.
As one competitor put it privately: “If safety isn’t guaranteed for us or for the people protecting us, then the system is broken.”
