Free-diver breaks world record beneath icy Swiss lake

Czech free-diver David Vencl dives to 52.1 metres under the ice of Lake Sils in one breath and wearing only a swimsuit on March 14 in this photograph taken from a video near St Moritz, Switzerland. Via Reuters / David Vencl Organisation

Czech diver David Vencl broke the world record for a freedive under ice without a wetsuit when he plunged to 52.1 metres in a single breath.

On Tuesday, the 40-year-old dived through a hole in Lake Sils near St Moritz, which was covered with 35-cm thick ice. He re-emerged one minute and 52 seconds later, spat some blood, sat down for a minute and then opened a bottle of champagne. A later visit to the hospital confirmed there was nothing serious.

Vencl beat the previous record by two metres. His record dive follows his entry into the Guinness World Records book for swimming the length of a frozen Czech lake in 2021.

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“He kind of enjoyed it but he admits he was a little more nervous than usual and he had some problems with breathing,” his promoter Pavel Kalous told Reuters.

“There is nothing difficult for him to be in cold water… Lack of oxygen is something normal for him. But this was completely different because it’s really difficult to work with the pressure in your ears in cold water.”

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Vencl told Blick.ch that he had been preparing for his record attempt for a year and had trained every day for the past three months.

His team included 18 assistants, many of whom travelled from the Czech Republic.