Trainer of 4 World Champions. Has been involved in 26
World Record events as trainer, organizer or judge.
Founder of F.R.E.E. and creator of the D.R.O.P Training
System.
Rudi is the epitome of the freediving professional,
having trained 4 world champions and been involved in
over 20 world records. Rudi was born on June 26th, 1969
in the island of Cuba, surrounded by the Caribbean Sea.
He started freediving at age 4, scuba diving at 7, and
by the time he was 15, he had accumulated thousands
of dives and was an extremely experienced diver. He
then became a member of the junior freediving national
team, where he started working with several world-class
divers and trainers and developing the basics of his
own training system. During all those years, Rudi kept
freediving and developing his very unique and innovative
training system, which he refined and polished constantly
for the following 6 years. In 1991, he immigrated to
the USA, where he continued to work in several facets
of the diving field. In 1995 he started training Alejandro
Ravelo, the first freediver he guided to several world
records. In 1998, he further proved the strength of
his innovative training system, when he took a totally
new and inexperienced diver, Tanya Streeter, to 3 world
records in less than 8 months. He then took a break
from training and, in early 1999, Rudi turned his attention
to improving the safety and educational sides of the
sport it by founding F.R.E.E. (Freediving Regulations
& Education Entity), an organization dedicated to
regulating freediving records and teaching courses.
But the urge to keep pushing the boundaries of freediving
performance was too strong, and late in 1999, he took
on a new trainee, Turkish freediver Yasemin Dalkilic.
Together, they set 6 world records between 1999 and
2001, and became inseparable partners in many other
projects. Rudi's latest training challenge was to bring
another unknown freediver to world prominence, this
time, David Lee, a young Jamaican martial artist who
has gone on to set another 3 world records. Rudi's still
actively involved in freediving training, teaching courses
around the world, usually accompanied by Yasemin and
David, and works also as president and consultant for
F.R.E.E. On his "spare" time, Rudi is also
heavily involved in underwater video and photography,
occupations that he conducts through the company Ideas
in Blue.
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