AIDA Depth Worlds Open in Cyprus With a Record Field

The biggest depth competition freediving has ever staged got under way in Cyprus on September 27. According to DeeperBlue, 178 athletes from 55 countries have entered the 37th AIDA World Apnea Depth Championships in Limassol Bay, the largest field the sport has assembled for a depth event.

The championships run until October 10, and Visit Cyprus notes that this is the fifth time the island has hosted the event. Admission for spectators is free.

Four disciplines, one line

Athletes compete in the four standard depth disciplines. In Constant Weight with Monofin (CWT) and Constant Weight with Bifins (CWTB), divers swim down and back up with fins and may not pull on the line. Free Immersion (FIM) removes the fins, and the diver pulls hand over hand along the rope. Constant Weight No Fins (CNF), widely regarded as the purest test, allows nothing but the diver's own strokes and kicks.

Because the event carries world championship status, performances can count as world records if they meet AIDA's rules on the day.

Names to watch

Several current record holders are expected in Limassol, including Alexey Molchanov, Petar Klovar and Nataliia Zharkova. The most clearly flagged record attempt so far belongs to Enchante Gallardo of Hawaii, who co-holds the women's FIM world record. She is expected to try to go beyond her own 106-meter mark on October 5.

Announced attempts are plans, not promises. Depth athletes routinely change their declared target during a competition depending on how their body is responding, the sea state and their equalization on the day, so the final list of record attempts will likely look different from early expectations.

How to follow it

AIDA is streaming the competition live on its YouTube channel, and DeeperBlue says it will publish daily reports. For recreational freedivers, the stream is a good chance to watch elite technique up close: the calm duck dive, the long glide phases, the way athletes manage the turn at the bottom plate, and the surface protocol they must complete within seconds of coming up. A dive only counts once the judges show a white card, so the last few seconds at the surface matter as much as the depth.

It is also a reminder of how these dives are made safe. Every competitive depth dive is supported by safety divers, judges and medical staff. The numbers seen in Limassol are the result of years of structured training, and anyone hoping to dive deeper should build that progression under a certified instructor rather than chasing depth alone.