One cool customer! Free-diver plunges 170 FEET beneath frozen Swiss lake without a wetsuit to set new world record
- The plunge took David Vencl 1 minute 54 seconds, longer than was expected
- He spat some blood, sat down, then opened a bottle of champagne to celebrate
A Czech free-diver has set an extraordinary new Guinness World Record after diving 170ft (52.1 metres) into the depths of an icy lake in just his speedos.
David Vencl plunged beneath the frozen ice in Switzerland’s Lake Sils on Tuesday for the record attempt.
Without so much as a wetsuit, the 40-year-old diver took a single breath before plunging through a drilled hole in the ice to retrieve a sticker from a depth of 50 meters to prove his feat before re-emerging through the same hole.
He spat some blood, sat down for a minute, and then opened a bottle of champagne.
A later visit to the hospital confirmed his body had sustained no significant damage from the record-breaking attempt.
Czech free-diver David Vencl dives to 170 feet (52 metres) under the ice of Lake Sils
Vencl reacts after his successful attempt at freediving surrounded by the Easter Alps Tuesday
David Vencl plunged beneath the frozen ice in Switzerland’s Lake Sils on Tuesday for the record attempt
The plunge in temperatures of between 1 and 4 degrees Celsius (34 and 40 degrees Fahrenheit) took Vencl 1 minute 54 seconds.
Above the ice, surrounded by snow-topped mountains in the Eastern Alps, the air temperature sat at around 4 degrees Celsius (40 degrees Fahrenheit), causing spectators to wrap up in winter coats.
Vencl’s promoter Pavel Kalous said the attempt was a bit slower than expected.
Kalous said: ‘He kind of enjoyed it but he admits he was a little more nervous than usual and he had some problems with breathing.
‘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,’ he added.
‘If you combine all these three things: cold water, lack of oxygen and the problem with working with pressure, it’s something very unique.’
After an extraordinary effort, the diver was taken to the hospital to ensure his world breaking attempt hadn’t caused any serious damage to his body. It was later confirmed that there was nothing serious.
Vencl is pictured preparing for his attempt, which he made without a wetsuit
An aerial view shows Lake Sils as Czech freediver David Vencl attempted to dive under the lake’s ice in one breath
Vencl is pictured emerging from the icy water after his successful attempt
Vencl spat some blood, sat down for a minute and then opened a bottle of champagne
The plunge in temperatures of between 1 and 4 degrees Celsius (34 and 40 degrees Fahrenheit) took Vencl 1 minute 54 seconds
Vencl already holds an entry into the Guinness World Records book for swimming the length of a frozen Czech lake in 2021.
In the 2021 record, he swam nearly 265 feet (almost 81 metres) in temperatures of 3 degrees Celsius (37 Fahrenheit) in a quarry in Lahost, 100 kilometres north-west of Prague.
He smashed the previous 2017 record of 250 feet (76 metres) set by Denmark’s Stig Avall Severinsen in southern Greenland.
Vencl already holds an entry into the Guinness World Records book for swimming the length of a frozen Czech lake in 2021
Vencl reacts after setting a new world record in men’s swimming under ice near Teplice, Czech Republic, February 23, 2021
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