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F.R.E.E. is happy to announce that on June 22nd, at
11:00 AM, in the waters of Bodrum, a town located in
the Southwest part of Turkey, a new Freediving World
Record was established. Topi Lintukangas, a 29 year-old
world class triathlete from Finland set a new record
in the Unassisted Constant Ballast category for men.
Mr. Lintukangas reached a depth of 48 meters/157 feet
in a total dive time of 1:38 minutes. This dive improves
on the previous record of 47 meters/154 feet that was
held by David Lee.
The record was verified
by F.R.E.E. judges Erman Akarsu (Australia) and Arthur
Zaloga (Lithuania). Mr. Akarsu acted as surface judge
where he verified compliance with all surface procedures
and received the confirmation tag from the diver, and
Mr. Zaloga was positioned at the goal depth where he
witnessed the confirmation tag retrieval and verified
compliance with all underwater procedures.
Mr. Lintukangas had been invited to Turkey
by freediver Yasemin Dalkilic, a 6 time record holder,
who was preparing for an attempt in the Unassisted category
herself. Unfortunately, Ms. Dalkilic had health problems
which prevented her from successfully completing her
record attempt. F.R.E.E. wishes to congratulate Topi
Lintukangas on his performance, which was achieved after
an eventful warm-up period, for the control, maturity
and athletic excellence exhibited during his dive. With
this record, he has given his country its first freediving
world record ever, and which we hope will be only the
start of a distinguished career. F.R.E.E. also wishes
to thank Ms. Dalkilic for her generosity in providing
all the needed conditions for a new diver to attempt
a world class performance, a gesture that is definitely
needed in the world of freediving. We also wish Ms.
Dalkilic a quick recovery and a return to top shape.
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