Stephane Mifsud, world record holder in freediving joins the Beuchat family!
We are very proud to welcome Stephane Mifsud in the Beuchat Team! This partnership was built by taking the time to get to know each other, to exchange, to talk about products but also about our common values and our state of mind.
But who is he?
Stéphane Mifsud discovered freediving at the age of 28 during a meeting with Pierre Frolla, freedivers and record holder. Until then, he was a "simple" underwater hunter and went down to a depth of 50 meters to shoot Dentis and Pagres.
Freediving quickly became Stéphane Mifsud's passion. A few months later, he won his first victories and a first world champion title in freediving.
He then tried all the modern freediving techniques: static freediving, dynamic freediving, half-distance freediving, free immersion, constant weight, variable weight and no limit freediving.
But Stéphane Mifsud will particularly excel in the discipline that requires the greatest mental strength: static apnea. It is about holding your breath as long as possible!
Les différents records du monde de Stéphane Mifsud en apnée statique
- March 2004: 8 minutes 24
- July 12, 2007: 10 minutes and 04 seconds
- June 8, 2009 : 11 minutes and 35 seconds (Current world record for static apnea)
His other achievements in dynamic apnea
- 1999: World champion in dynamic freediving: 155 meters
- May 2001 : World record in dynamic apnea with fins : 172 meters
- March 2002: World record in dynamic freediving: 174 meters
- March 2004 : Dynamic freediving record without fins : 131 meters
- January 2004: World record for dynamic freediving: 209 meters
- March 2006: Dynamic freediving world record: 213 meters
High level athlete, Stéphane uses the same mechanisms as marine mammals: Decrease of the cardiac rhythm, concentration of blood in the lungs and the brain so that the legs and arms do not consume oxygen.
The deformation of the Eustachian tube combined with the carp technique, which consists of positioning the houndstooth mouth and sucking in air in small quantities, injecting it into the lungs, holding it back by blocking the glottis and starting again, allows him to contain 11 liters of air in his lungs. This capacity is double the normal one!
With more than 30 years of experience, Stéphane MIFSUD created in 2015 "l'Odyssée Bleue", an environmental, solidarity and educational association dedicated to the underwater world.
He organizes events, awareness-raising operations, research missions and underwater pollution cleanup in connection with the general public, children, scientists but also with the socio-economic environment.
"I have always been passionate about the sea and the oceans, and I would like to share my experiences, my knowledge and my values through my collaboration with BEUCHAT. Freediving performance is at the heart of my preoccupations but it is not an end in itself... Exchange, transmission and preservation of the environment are essential to glimpse the richness of the aquatic world in which we make a few incursions tolerated by its occupants.
Stéphane Mifsud plans to organize in 2022 a World Championship of underwater waste collection to raise awareness of the underwater pollution that threatens the biodiversity of the oceans. He should also participate in the next "Route du Rhum" with the sailboat Odyssée Bleue to raise public awareness of the pollution of the Caribbean seabed following the regular passage of hurricanes like Irma and Maria.
Beuchat Team
Diving
Apnea
Snorkeling
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