The Art of Packing

Berlin, Germany | February 21, 2009

Packing 'pa-kiŋ' - 1. The act of making one's luggage; 2. The act of filling all possible lung space with air; both frequently practiced by breath-hold divers.

William has been doing some travelling around Europe lately to finalize the details of his upcoming expedition to South Africa. His last stop-over before Berlin was Brussels; the former capital of the Medieval Duchy of Brabant, now Europe's capital, home of the evil Belgian chocolate and world-renowned underwater photographer Fred Buyle.

So, while he had left Geneva with all the right equipment to attend the 11th Berlin Master Cup, an indoor freediving competition, he had the misfortune to forget his wetsuit in the capital of Belgium's Kingdom. Oops. Bigger oops when he realized it, only a few hours before the beginning of the competition.

A wetsuit is an essential piece of equipment for the perfomance of static apnea, where an athlete lies completely still face down in a swimming pool in an attempt to stretch the time. Although, some athletes have been seen doing static apnea without a complete suit, the risk of heat loss dictates the use of a full-body 3-mm wetsuit.

So, William did what one must, that is, run around to borrow a wetsuit, no small feat as it has to fit, comfort being a large part of static apnea. First he found a pair of bottoms, all he needed was a top. By the time he was able to borrow one, his 45-minute official warm up was well underway.

William had lost most of his motivation by the time he eased himself into the pool in preparation for his performance, so he decided to throw in the towel. He spent the rest of the competition on deck watching some amazing performances unfold. In the end, Denmark drove the show.

Swiss champion Bettina Wolfer took first place in the static apnea event with 4 min and 47 seconds. Combined with her 124m dynamic, she placed second on the overall ranking.

Denmark's Josephine Jørgensen held her breath for 4 min and 33 sec. Together with an astonishing 172m dynamic apnea which won her the event, she took first place in the competition.

Switzerland's Michael Naef. With only three months into the sport, he easily plugged a 7 min and 31 sec static apnea, 3 seconds off Nicolas Guerry's national record performance of July 2007 which had also won him the World Champion title in the discipline. Michael placed 4th in the overall ranking of this competition. It looks like Helvetia has more records in the making.

Denmark's Jesper Stechmann. Two performances, two personal bests and two first places with 7 min and 38 sec in static and 211m in dynamic (also a pool record). Undeniably the winner of the 11th Berlin Master Cup.