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The BFA are delighted to introduce the UK Team for the 2016 Individual AIDA Pool World Championship in Turku, Finland (www.aidafinland.org).

The BFA are delighted to introduce the UK Team for the 2016 Individual AIDA Pool World Championship in Turku, Finland (www.aidafinland.org).

The competition will run from 25th June to 3rd July and we are sending a team of 5 athletes, two of whom hold Wild Cards* (which means they ranked top ten in the world for one or more of the three pool competition disciplines), they are: Alice Hickson*, Georgina Miller*, Lucelle Simms, for the women and Philip Fennell and Mark Gooding for the men. Also, Andy Jardine is taking up an important role of the team coach and captain for the event.

Last year’s World Championships in Belgrade saw Alice win two medals (gold in Dynamic No Fins and bronze in Static) and other UK athletes qualify for the final stages of the event. The BFA is confident this year’s team will perform to the best of their abilities and we wish them well.

The UK Team are all self-funded and to help them perform their very best they are being generously supported by Divesangha (www.divesangha.com).

Divesangha (www.divesangha.com) is made up of designers based in London; they are motivated by passion, uniqueness, innovation and a love for the sea. The word “sangha” means “association” or “community” in Pali and Sanskrit. They design and create basic, easy to wear clothes that give divers a proper identity. They call it “divewear” or “surface gear” and the designs mix fashion and sportswear, using functional fabrics and neutral colours. They manufacture ethically and locally, trade fairly, design wisely and consume responsibly. The divewear clothes are made in the UK as an exclusive, limited edition and they don’t use any plastic bags in their packaging when you buy from the website. This is the first time that Divesangha have sponsored the UK Team, we are delighted to have them on-board and the athletes will be proud to wear their surface gear!

Would you like to sponsor the UK Team? If so please visit our website for more information, or contact our Sponsorship Officer Jay Cluskey: sponsorship@britishfreediving.orgThe BFA are delighted to introduce the UK Team for the 2016 Individual AIDA Pool World Championship in Turku, Finland (www.aidafinland.org).

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BFA Members Day at NDAC in Chepstow on Saturday 30 July 2016

BFA Members Day at NDAC in Chepstow on Saturday 30 July 2016

We’re holding a BFA Members Day at NDAC in Chepstow on Saturday 30 July 2016.

We’ve arranged a freedive safety demo (by Liv Philip), talk on underwater photography by Mark Harris (author of Glass and Water), BBQ, camping and yoga (with Rebecca Coales). And of course for qualified divers*, some time on the Saltfree platform and NDAC attractions.

We’ll cover the costs of diving for BFA members. Our BBQ will be at the Beeches Farm campsite where we’ve also set aside space for the freedive group. There’s a normal Saltfree meet the next day for those staying on.

Places are limited for this event so please sign up today by contacting Rebecca membership@britishfreediving.org stating whether you are diving only or diving + campsite. We’ll need a deposit from you if you’re camping

See you there!

*at least AIDA 2 star or equivalent

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British freedivers excel at Vertical Blue freediving depth competition

Dean Chaouche National Records 74m CNF

Picture Credit: Daan Verhoeven (www.daanverhoeven.com)

British freediver Dean Chaouche set a new UK Record in Constant Weight No Fins (CNF) of 74m on the opening day of the Vertical Blue depth competition in the Bahamas. Since 22 April, the world’s top divers have been challenging each other to dive deeper, some further than anyone has been before. Three World Records were also set at what has become the premier freediving competition in the world.

Two days later (24 April), Dean then became the second British man to reach 100m in Constant Weight (CWT). Dean said on Twitter that “It’s been very hard to get here, there have been many hiccups, but I’m glad I made it!” Dean has been living on Long Island by Dean’s Blue Hole, where the competition is held. Although not named after him, it’s fitting given he’s become so comfortable diving here regularly.

Dean put his success down to working hard on swimming technique, diving regularly and training his body and mind to be more tolerant to carbon dioxide. His National Record feels all the better for the frustration he felt missing an opportunity to set the record in 2015. His persistence has paid off – along with the CNF national record he came 3rd overall in the competition and 2nd in the CNF discipline.

Fellow Brits Liv Phillip and Georgina Miller also found success at Vertical Blue, ranking 6th and 8th respectively. Despite ill health during her stay on Long Island, Liv achieved a 63m Free Immersion (FIM) dive which gave her 4th place in that discipline and Georgina performed a personal best.

The competition closed with not one, but two World Records by British-born, New Zealand freediver William Trubridge in Free Immersion to 122 and then 124m. That followed an impressive CNF World Record of 72m set by Japanese freediver Sayuri Kinoshita. The events kept us all on the edge of our seats for almost two weeks!

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Dean Chaouche sets new National Record of 74m No Fins!

Dean Chaouche National Records 74m CNF

British freediver Dean Chaouche is having a great week at the Vertical Blue depth competition in the Bahamas. On the opening day (22/4) he set a new British record in Constant weight No Fins (CNF) category of 74m, which is one metre deeper than the previous record set by Dave Kent in 2014. On Sunday 24/4 he’s gone on to become the second British man to reach 100m in Constant Weight (CWT). Dean said on Twitter this week that “It’s been very hard to get here, there have been many hiccups, but I’m so glad I made it!”. Fellow Brits Liv Phillip and Georgina Miller are also competing at Vertical Blue and to date have had successful dives. We await more news from all our divers as the competition unfolds into next week.

Keep up with the latest news on our Facebook page, and watch a video of the dive here!

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Winners of 7th BFA Great Northern freediving competition and UK Pool National Championships – Alice Hickson and Adam Drzazga

UK Pool National Championships - Alice Hickson  UK Pool National Championships - Adam Drzazga

Picture Credit: Dean Martin

Monday 11 April 2016; — On Sunday 10 April, the 7th Great Northern International and the BFA UK National Pool Championships, organised by Steve Millard of www.learn2freedive.com was held at Wright Robinson School Sports College in Manchester (http://wrightrobinson.co.uk/)

The Great Northern looked and felt a little different this year, being held on one day with two disciplines in the 25m pool, however athletes from the UK and Europe flocked to this friendly event with enthusiasm, with the promise of displaying some impressive performances.

We were not let down. The UK male winner was Adam Drzazga from Blue Water freediving club with two strong performances; a huge 7.18 STA and 154m DYN. Coming in second for the Brits was Steven Tasker with 135m DYN and 4.59 STA and very close in third Paul Butterworth, with 5.02 STA and 132m DYN, both from the local Apneists UK club. Notably both Steven and Paul swam in bi-fins rather than the usual monofin. In first place for International male was also Adam Drzazga. Coming in second with an impressive performance was Aristo Vounakis from Apnea Revolution club with 5.27 STA and 130m DNF, and Marco Piccioni in third place with 113m DNF and 5.47 STA. Eoin Clarke set an Irish National Record in his dynamic swim of 117m DNF.

The UK female winner was Alice Hickson, last year’s Newbie Award winner and also DNF World Champion in 2015, with a solid 130m DNF and 6:33 STA. Alice trains with the Bristol Freedivers club along with Rose Van-Gowler who came second with a 3.39 STA and 68m DNF. In third place with a 2.31 STA and 70m DYN was Kate Goodwin. Alice also took the top prize for International female, with Go Freediving Club’s Delphine Brise from France in second, swimming 115m DYN and 3.23 STA and Rose Van-Gowler in third. Camilla Argent set an Irish National Record for the ladies, swimming 80m Dynamic.The winners of the Newbie Awards were Delphine Brise and Phillip Fennell.

The Great Northern is a competition that celebrates achievements both in the pool and the hard training effort it takes to get there. It recognizes that freediving is not always about numbers and times but about personal achievements and obstacles overcome. Sometimes dives won’t go as planned and it shows the true strength of an athlete to learn from their experience and come back stronger next time. The sense of atmosphere at this year’s competition spoke volumes, with athletes from clubs all over the UK and indeed the world, coaching, congratulating and celebrating personal bests with genuine enthusiasm.

The official kit sponsors were: Omer Breathless Emotions (http://www.omersub.com/), part of the Aqua Sphere UK and Aqua Lung UK family, Blue Orb (http://www.blue-orb.uk/) and the British Freediving Association (www.britishfreediving.org).

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UK Team Selection for the 2016 AIDA Team World Championships!

Applications for the UK Team for 2016 AIDA Team World Championships in Kalamata are now open!

AIDA Team World Championships, Kalamata, Greece, 16th September – 25th September 2016

Applications for the UK Team for 2016 AIDA Team World Championships in Kalamata are now open!

UK Team Selection
The competition will take place from 16th to 25th September 2016 and will include Dynamic with fins (DYN), Constant Weight (CWT) and Static apnea (STA).

We hope to send a team of 3 men and 3 women, plus up to 2 additional athletes of each gender as substitutes and a Team Captain/Coach (who may or may not be part of the competing team).

Selection will be based on the highest proven performances in the three disciplines. AIDA world championship team selection will be by AIDA ranked points dated from 18 months prior to 9th May 2016. In case of candidates wishing to be considered who do not have AIDA ranked points a performance witnessed by an AIDA Judge or AIDA UK Instructor will stand at 80% of the resulting outcome.)

Application
If you are interested in competing for the UK in Greece, please let us know by 9th May. Please send an email to competitions@britishfreediving.org listing your highest AIDA ranked performances since November 9th 2014 in Dynamic with fins (DYN), Constant Weight (CWT) and Static apnea (STA) with details of where this ranking was obtained. If you do not have a ranked performance in any or all of these disciplines, please let us know your current best performances in training, and when you anticipate seeing those ratified officially. If you anticipate achieving a higher ranked performance in any of the disciplines in the next few months, please also let us know that in your email. If your geographical location makes it difficult for you to gain a ranked performance, please let us know and we will take this into consideration.

If you are interested in going to Greece as Team Captain/Coach, please let us know you are interested by letting us know your experience in this area, and why you think you would be good for the job. Applications for the Team Captain/Coach position will be considered by the team once they have been selected, and appointed within one month of final team selection.

Availability and costs
If you make the decision to apply for the 2016 Team, you need to be available in Greece for the dates above.

The BFA will be doing all it can to gather sponsorship and logistical support for the 2016 team. However, you also need to be sure you can afford your flights and expenses and the entry fee of 240 Euros and accommodation costs.

All competing athletes must be over 18 years old, UK citizens and members of the BFA at the time of the competition.

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Mens & Women’s British Freediving Champions 2015

Mens British Freediving Champions 2015 - Tim Money Women's British Freediving Champions 2015 - Liv Philip

Every year, the BFA selects the male and female National Champion based on competition results across all disciplines in the pool and open water. For UK divers this means training year-round and often having to travel abroad to reach the depths needed to excel on the World stage.

Meet 2015’s UK Champions Liv Phillip and Tim Money, who have trained together for many years in London. This is Liv’s 9th consecutive year as Champion, and Tim’s 3rd. Both are AIDA Instructors, representing the UK regularly at team and individual championships and both volunteer their precious time to assist in running the BFA. Liv and Tim spoke to each other about their freediving year, challenges overcome, achievements and how they’ve kept on top of their game for 10 years.

Liv Phillip (LP): “Tim, I met you on a cold winter’s day on the Saltfree platform in 2006. You were doing some sort of strange leg stretch in your wetsuit. Why are you still going strong in freediving ten years later?”
Tim Money (TM): “Freediving is great escapism from conventional life, which of course I value with my job and family, but it gives me a chance to have some adventures. Plus, the community is special. At events there is a common shared love and understanding of freediving despite differences in race, culture and lifestyle and I think that is pretty unique. Our sport is competitive, but because of the intensity of our sport, camaraderie shines through”.

TM: “Liv, you like all the competitive disciplines and this is the 9th consecutive year you have been the British Women’s Champion, what was your freediving all about in 2015?”
LP: “2015 was totally about looking after my family and not about freediving. I took two trips to deep dive this year and the training time was minimal, but it provided some much needed time away from responsibilities back in the UK. Family illness and difficult circumstances meant it wasn’t possible to make the sort of selfish decisions necessary to be a top athlete, but made it very clear how much I love diving in the sea. The challenges I’ve faced this year outside of freediving have been very important to me to put into the perspective how unimportant competition results are in the grand scheme of things. Having said that, as soon as I was in the water, I valued every moment and I think that explains winning the British Champion title. I ended up with a personal best in Free Immersion with a 4th place dive of 68m at the Depth World Championship in Cyprus. The nice thing is that my mum is my biggest fan and this really cheered her up”.

LP: “What about you? How were you looking at your freediving in 2015?”
TM: “I got some more time in deep water this year which let me concentrate on some things. I did more UK diving, which I enjoy and keeps me from getting so rusty, and I was able to get away to the Cyprus Depth World Individual Championships. I did a Constant Weight dive to 67m there, but I think for me the real achievement was the experience of learning how to do that. I went to the Bahamas earlier in the year for the Vertical Blue Championship and my family came along, but I found my little girl won my attention hands down and so I just dived for fun”.

LP: “Are you still as excited about freediving 10 years on?”
TM: “I question this every winter, and I’ve decided I will continue in whatever way as long as I am enjoying it. That may be recreational, within my club, teaching, or competitively”.
TM: “And how about you?”
LP: “Yes, I still love what I’m doing and I am quite adept at changing things so I don’t get bored. Anyway someone has to beat you and give you something to aim at!”
TM: “Haha! I think having a training partner who I can have healthy competition with gives us both a kick to make an effort”
LP: “I agree you need a training partner who’s going to be honest with you and know when to tell you the truth however much you might not want to hear it. When it all goes right, or wrong, you want your best friends to be there to share it with, or really what is the point of it all?”

Liv would like to thank Fusion Lifestyle, Powerfins & Elios Wetsuits for their support in 2015.

Tim would like to thank Powerfins and his employer Saba for their support in 2015.

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The 7th Great Northern competition and the UK BFA Pool championships has been announced for the 10th April, 2016

The 7th Great Northern competition and the UK BFA Pool championships has been announced for the 10th April, 2016

The competition has reduced to one day for this year, and will be two disciplines over two sessions.

Static (STA) will be held on the first session, and the second session will be a choice of Dynamic with fins (DYN) or Dynamic no fins (DNF). In the dynamic no fins sessions points will be multiplied by 1.3 to even out the fairness in the point score.

For example, a Freediver getting 130m DYN will be the same points as a Freediver getting 100m DNF (100 x 1.3 = 130m)

The competition winners are those athletes with the biggest point score over the two disciplines. AIDA rankings are given for all disciplines competed in. The AIDA rankings for DNF will NOT be multiplied by 1.3, this is purely to decide the competition winner.

Please visit the site www.freedivingcompetition.com to see more details and enter the competition.

Video from Apneists UK’s last competition: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=fu9GhxeU7sk

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UK Team Selection – 2016 AIDA Pool World Championships

BFA AGM

Individual AIDA Pool World Championships Turku, Finland 25th June – 4th July 2016

UK Team Selection
Applications for the UK Team -2016 AIDA Pool World Championships in Turku, Finland are now open. The competition will take place from 25th June to 4th July and will include Dynamic with fins (DYN), Dynamic without fins (DNF) and Static apnea (STA).We hope to send a full team of 4 men and 4 women per discipline and a Team Captain/Coach (who may or may not be part of the competing team).Selection will be based on the highest proven performances in the three disciplines. AIDA world championship team selection will be by AIDA ranked points dated from 18 months prior to 15th March 2016. In case of candidates wishing to be considered who do not have AIDA ranked points a performance witnessed by an AIDA Judge or AIDA UK Instructor will stand at 80% of the resulting outcome.)

Application
If you are interested in competing for the UK in Finland, please let us know by 15th March. Please send an email to competitions@britishfreediving.org listing your highest AIDA ranked performances since September 15th 2014 in Dynamic with fins (DYN), Dynamic without fins (DNF) and Static apnea (STA) with details of where this ranking was obtained. If you do not have a ranked performance in any or all of these disciplines, please let us know your current best performances in training, and when you anticipate seeing those ratified officially. If you anticipate achieving a higher ranked performance in any of the disciplines in the next few months, please also let us know that in your email. If your geographical location makes it difficult for you to gain a ranked performance, please let us know and we will take this into consideration.

If you are interested in going to Finland as Team Captain/Coach, please let us know you are interested by letting us know your experience in this area, and why you think you would be good for the job. Applications for the Team Captain/Coach position will be considered by the team once they have been selected, and appointed within one month of final team selection.

If you make the decision to apply for the 2016 team, you need to be available in Finland for the dates above.The BFA will be doing all it can to gather sponsorship and logistical support for the 2016 team. However, you also need to be sure you can afford your flights and expenses and the entry fee of 350Euros and accommodation costs.

All competing athletes must be over 18 years old, UK citizens and members of the BFA at the time of the competition.

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BFA AGM 5 December 2015

BFA AGM

The 2015 AGM was conducted by Skype on Saturday 5 December and we had the biggest turn out to date! Year on year our membership grows as does the support you all show us so thank you.

2015 was an exciting one for British Freediving. It would be difficult and near impossible to mention everything so a summary of the highlights will have to do! The year started with the announcement of the BFA’s annual UK Freediving National Champions Liv Philip and Michael Board, both top athletes and wonderful ambassadors of our sport. We were treated to multi-national record holder Georgina Miller holding her breath live, for five whole minutes on the BBC1 the One Show, prime-time TV, coached by her partner Daan Verhoeven; the show also featured top British freediving athlete Ian Donaldson. Samphire Amps shared her imaginative insights and experiences as a freediver with Jarvis Cocker for a special edition of Wireless Nights at the Proms. Over the last twelve months we have seen 6 national records set by the following athletes: John Moorcroft (DNF 176m), Georgina Miller (STA 06:33), Alice Hickson (DNF 153m & 174m, STA 06:58) and Michael Board (FIM 97m). And I think it is fair to say that one of the biggest highlights has to be Alice Hickson coming home a World Champion Freediver with not only a gold medal for her massive dynamic no fins swim of 174m, but also a bronze for her equally impressive static breath hold, two seconds shy of seven minutes at Freediving World Championships in Serbia!

Freediving has continued to make appearances across the press, in print, online, on the Radio, on TV and even in the form of a hugely successful exhibition in the centre of London. And we are continuing to appear on Redbull Adventure’s website and Facebook page courtesy of top freediving videographer Daan Verhoeven (www.daanverhoeven.com).

Finally and last but not at all least, a massive thank is owed to our wonderful sponsors Divesangha (www.divesangha.com), Elios Sub (www.eliossub.com), Bounce (www.bouncefoods.com) and Saltfree (www.saltfree.biz) for their generous support of our British Freediving Team in 2015.

From all of us at the BFA, we wish you all wonderful and safe dives for 2016!

Minutes from the Meeting

Location: Skype

Present: Adam Drzazga, Andy Jardine, Bart Lubecki, Beci Ryan, Deborah Gaskell, Georgina Miller, James Cluskey, Jean- Fabrice Detard, Liv Philip, Matt le clerc, Rebecca Coales, Tim Money.

Apologies: David Tranfield & Martyn Jones

1) Thanks were given to Martyn Jones for his time on the committee as Treasurer. We are pleased to announce that Julian Jansen van Rensburg has stepped up to take on the role of Secretary.

2) Notification of Committee Members for 2015/16 were announced:Chairman: Adam Dzraga
Clubs Officer: George Miller
Competitions Officer: Bart Lubecki
E Media Officer: Tim Money
Membership Officer: Rebecca Coales
Press Officer: Rebecca Coales with support from Beci Ryan
Records & AIDA Liaison Officer: David Tranfield
Secretary: Julian Jansen van Rensburg
Sponsorship Officer: Jay Cluskey
Training & Safety Officer: Liv Philip
Treasurer: care taken by Liv Philip & Tim Money

3) Constitution & New Committee Applicants:

a. Working Groups & Volunteers: There have been a number of people expressing an interest in volunteering their time but are unable commit to a full role. It was decided that we should invite volunteers to help with projects that arise throughout the coming year. It was suggested we send an e-newsletter via Mail Chimp to invite volunteers from our database of contacts (a note could be included in the renewal for membership and a list kept on the BFA Drop Box folder).

a. References: It was suggested that any committee applications must be supported with a reference from someone within the freediving community. This proposal was voted in favour and it was agreed that a paragraph should be written into the constitution to reflect this.

b. Statement on role integrity: It was suggested that committee members should be sign a statement on role integrity and again this was voted for in favour. Georgina Miller volunteered to write this up.

4) Treasurer Role: As there were no applications for the role of Treasurer, Liv Phlip and Tim Money volunteered to stand in. Tim will contact Martyn Jones and find out what the state of accounts is.
It was suggested that the Treasurer give regular updates to the rest of committee on the state of accounts; an outline of what this might be is to be drawn up.

5) Membership Officer: See Membership Report
Also to note, Rebecca requested that the note that members get a log book on the website be removed and it was agreed by attendees to do so:

6) E-media Officer:
a. Sponsor logos: These are now clearly displayed on the BFA website on top right hand corner as well as at the bottom of the home page. The sponsor logos directly link to the sponsor’s website.
b. Membership E-card: We have now moved away from plastic cards completely and are using e-cards, which have the added benefit of being more eco-friendly. This year there was a photo competition for members and the winning image is to be featured on the 2016 e-card.
c. Website: Google thinks website has been hacked. This needs to be sorted. Redesign might help. At present we have three options for updating the BFA website:
i. Martyn Jones has a website ready but needs to pass on instructions;
ii. Bart Lubecki has made a suggestion for a completely new website; and
iii. We have received a third option from a potential volunteer

7) Sponsorship Officer: The sponsors for the 2015 teams were Divesangha, Elios Sub, Bounce Balls and Beet-it (Pool Team only). Divesangha, Elios and Bounce Balls have expressed an interest in continuing to sponsor the team in 2016. Beci has agreed to continue her dialogue with these sponsors. Jay has been in contact with other potential sponsors.

8) Press Officer: See Press Report

9) Competitions Officer: See Competitions Report
Bart will send a reminder of the BFA Competition Grants.

10) Safety Officer: As well as offering advice to the media, Liv has been liaising with other emerging freediving agencies that have sought her out for guidance and her expertise. New AIDA material on courses will be available shortly, which is up-to-date and user-friendly. There are a number of projects Liv would like to develop for 2016 and a request was made for a training bursary fund to encourage people to go on courses – this was agreed in principal although a detailed proposal would need to be submitted and then voted on by committee.
The Affiliate Clubs Safety Agreement needs updating. It was reiterated that all affiliate clubs must sign the Safety Agreement in order to be listed on the BFA website. Georgina and Liv to look at updating and sending it out to all clubs to resign.

11) Clubs Officer: See Clubs Report
It was proposed that non-AIDA freediving agencies be allowed to become an affiliate club and listed on the BFA website. After some discussion, it was agreed that as long as the other freediving agency club agreed to sign the (updated) Affiliate Clubs Safety Agreement, then they would be allowed to become an affiliate club and be listed.

12) Team Selection for 2016 World Championships: The BFA aim to send the maximum number of athletes possible to each World Championships. Team members are chosen based on AIDA Ranked performance from 18 months prior to cut off date (with a cut off date 3 months before entry deadline).
a. AIDA Individual Pool World Championships will be hosted by the Finnish Diver’s Federation in Turku, Finland.
i. Dates: 25 June to 4 July 2016
ii. BFA Deadline for applications: 15 March 2016
iii. Registration Deadline: 30/04/16
iv. Maximum number of athletes: 4 men & 4 women, Coach and Team Captain
v. Official website: http://aidafinland.org/

b. AIDA Team World Championships will be hosted by Freedive Club Greece in Kalamata, Greece.
i. Dates: 16 – 25 September 2016
ii. BFA Deadline for applications: 16 May 2016
iii. Registration Deadline: 31 May 2016
iv. Maximum number of athletes: 3 men + a reserve, 3 women + a reserve, Coach and Team Captain.
v. Official website: TBC
An announcement of both events and call for applicants is to be written up and published on the BFA website and Social Media.

13) Membership Fees 2016: It was agreed there would be no change to Membership Fee for 2016. However, it was proposed and unanimously and enthusiastically agreed, subject to checking the accounts for 2015, that £2 per individual membership fee be donated to AIDA International for their incredible work on research into safety.

14) Announcement of 2015 UK Champions: Congratulations to Liv Philip & Tim Money. Results are calculated according to AIDA ranked points from November 2014 – November 2015 (across all 6 competitive disciplines using the website Apnearanking.se). A press release is to be written by Rebecca Coales for the BFA website, Press Contacts and Social Media.