Ukrainian woman breaks world record in freediving

Ukrainian swimmer Kateryna Sadurska has set a new world record in the freediving competition in “flipperless diving” (CNF). The athlete dived to a depth of 80 meters.

Kateryna also held the previous world record of 78 meters.

The 8th CMAS Freediving World Championships 2024 started in Greece on October 2. On one of the competition’s days, a Ukrainian woman became the world champion for the third time by diving to a depth of 95 meters on a cable.

Equipment and training play an essential role in this discipline, and this year, the Ukrainian did not have the opportunity to test the starting structure before the competition. The athletes had only one official training session, during which Sadurska practiced another discipline.

During the championships, the Ukrainian set a new national record, diving 103 meters with a mono-last. For comparison, the symbol of Kyiv, the Motherland, is one meter shorter (102 meters). Thus, Kateryna Sadurska became the first Ukrainian woman to dive to such a depth. The previous national record was 102 meters, set by Natalia Zharkova.

Kateryna Sadurska said the competition was held in the Mediterranean Sea, where the water temperature was much lower than during her training — only 24 degrees on the surface — which made it much more difficult to dive.

At this year’s championship, the Ukrainian will compete inyear’ser discipline – bi-flipper diving (CWTB).