AIDA World championship indoor 2011- Lignano

[Goran Colak]

Yes it is rather disappointing, I think a lot of people will now consider going there at all...

 

[trux]

The problem is that there was no other candidate for the WC this year. Nobody was interested in organizing the event, hence AIDA Int. had to take this only possibility, otherwise the WC would have to be cancelled.

 

[dimitris33]

Very dissapointing to hear that there was only one candidate among all these countries.. Seems like grey is the future of our passion.

So we are now on the "better than nothing.." road.. I think many athletes will take a step back under these conditions unless the mind swaps and watch it as a challenge.

 

[trux]

I do not think it is that bad. You can still become the World Champion there, and if Goran or others refuse to participate, the more chance you have

And frankly told, I really believe you can do a PB in a 50m pool. If you ever tried doing some DNF competitions in a 50m pool, you may be surprised, there is actually little difference to a 25m pool. Especially for short guys like me, with not so much additional weight. For tall competitors, with huge neck weight, the push-off may bring more advantage, but personally I see the 50m pool rather as an advantage, and am glad to have perhaps a bit more chance to get into the finals

 

[pingshui]

I understand that many athletes are disappointed about this, but think about this:
- you still get to compete and in the end the best one will still win
- it's not all about world records. It is sad for those whose trained for a record, but there are many more competitions with WR status on this planet. And maybe you can set an unofficial 50m lane record or show a great performance that will be admired by the freedive community
- you should be glad that you are able to participate (i am still far from being good enough or having the money for equipment and trip expenses)
- isn't is also about meeting and making friends or meeting other top athletes? Sharing some experiences?

 

[Mullins]

Moreover, doing DYN in a variable weight pool is also far from perfect.

Better than doing it in a no limits pool :t

If I was planning to attend, I don't think the switch to a 50m pool would bother me. It's just about the only comp on the calendar where the objective is simply to win, rather than set a record or get a ranking. It'll be interesting to see whether the distances are affected in a big way.

 

[Pelle31]

And then it's another issue. At least for some people who don't get the chance to practies in 50 m pool. I mean, how many 50 meter pools are there?
In my town we have 1(!) 25 m pool. The nearest 50 m is a nice 400 km away. Call me cheap and not dedicated enough, but do people have to move to Tenerife to get a chance to practies in a 50 m pool before a WC?

It is not a very cheap 10 days in Italy and to at least be able to set foot in a pool that all of a sudden is being used would help out a bit.

Or they can use a 25 m pool that would make more people attend and also most likely perform good results.
It is after all the World Championship, not any other competition.

 

[trux]

As Goran wrote, the problem is the requiremnt for 8 lanes for the finals. So even if the organizer would want to use the 25m pool, they can't. They could maximally do there the qualification heats, and then the finals in the 50m pool, but I guess that would stir also a lot of complaints.

 

[dimitris33]

- isn't is also about meeting and making friends or meeting other top athletes? Sharing some experiences?

This is by far imho the best reason to attend a Championship either as a participant or a visitor either it is a 25m, 50m or 200m pool... The one that promotes the athletic spirit.

I will attend the Depth World championship in Kalamata not as an athlete (I am too still far from being good enough to participate) but as visitor to meet the world first class athletes and say hi. Reason? Only One. I share the same passion.

Not everyone can be a Messi but everybody have played football sometime.

I bet the arena will be full.

 

[Aber]

Don't forget that this is ITALIA. Great food and wine! No place better to enjoy the three D's: drinking, dining and diving (perhaps not in this order, though). rofl

 

[sgnips]

hi all,
i'm sorry i do not have an official answer by now, but it is coming soon, both from AIDA Italy and the organizers

let me express my pov:

- isn't is also about meeting and making friends or meeting other top athletes? Sharing some experiences?

this is one of the few sentences making sense in this thread as far as i have read

someone say a 25m pool should be used for dnf, someone say both the dyn and dnf pool floor should be flat, someone say it's expensive, some say this, some say that... want to find a coffee right after the dive?

guys, i think it's not easy to organize a freediving comp and even more difficult should it be to hold a WC with finals, semifinals and so on, for each speciality: it's a 10-day-comp, not easy at all, definitely
i participated at the italian champs held in june in the very same conditions you will find at the WC (the organizers were not the same), i know very well the place and the people working there and my opinion is that making a good event and give the community the possibility to attend a WC is actually the most important thing
i'm sure Alessandro Vergendo & his crew can make a good event even if they decide to hold it in a puddle and i can challenge anyone saying this is not true

so please, be patient and be happy your WC has a nice place to be, even if conditions might not be the top for you
and if you decide to stay home, i will be sorry for that but it makes a little extra chance for me to put my butt into the finals :t:t

cheers

 

[UffeDex]

I competed in Europe Evolution Cup 2008, and I have a slight memory of that they had a 25 m wall in the 50 m pool, but I don't trust my memory 100% here.

Also, the pool is nice, there is a short step in the middle, 30 cm ?, not really disturbing.

I also agree that DNF shuld be in 25 m lanes. Don't forget that 97% of the 100 (?) athletes won't get medals, hence their goal will be NR and PB's ... and to participate at a WC ;-)

 

[pehtran]

I think switching from 25 to 50 can be a major issue for some. Some adapt prety easy but I know that for others it is not just about the push off from the wall. It is more a pshychological factor. For apnea disciplins it is critical to make a relaxed dive in a familiar conditions. Some even make their swims with their eyes closed. And they know how many kicks they need and they make their turns in a semi trance. Take that away and I can understand why they feel so disturbed by this news. You want to go to the WC with the thought that you can make the dive of your life there. And yes! socializing and sharing experience IS the most enjoyable part of the WC.

 

[trux]

The organizer promised to answer in details soon too, but Leonardo D'Imporzano from AIDA Italy answered on the Assembly in the following way:

I speak as me...Leonardo D'Imporzano AIDA ITALIA. and not in the name of Apnea Evolution, that will write you soon! But I wrote them about the pool and they answer me just about the 50 m and not 25m:

1. a large number of athletes has experienced it with very good appreciations;
2. it's a television exigency for the direct tv transmission;
3. the 25m pool is no longer available.

 

[fnacinovich]

Hello,

I exchanged some emails with the organization (Apnea Evolution) and I am reporting their answer:

The reasons behind the DNF taking place in the 50m pool are the following:

1) The decision was taken in January, along with all the organizing committee, and it was released for public domain in February
2) We will have TV coverage, thus DNF in a 50m pool will certainly make the broadcast of the finals more spectacular
3) the 25m pool is not available

Many athletes, even high-level, have expressed great enthusiasm for this choice. Therefore, as it is already the case for other water sports like swimming, there will be two records: one for 25m lanes and another one for 50m.

While we understand your concerns, we believe that the 50m pool will not be such an impediment. Indeed we are confident that after some adaptation, it will become an advantage for everyone to compete in that beautiful Olympic pool, and moreover we are sure it will be a great competition!

Francesco

 

[aris ioannidis]

thank you for the info Franceso. So, basicaly, the organizers gave no good reason for the 50m choice. Wonder which high-level athletes expressed their great enthusiam?

 

[trux]

Wonder which high-level athletes expressed their great enthusiam?

I guess they speak about the Italians who have set some national records there.

As for the claim "there will be two records: one for 25m lanes and another one for 50m", I do not think the organizer is right - there is no such option currently in plan. Neither at AIDA, nor in my own ranking. In most cases I simply do not have the information about the pool, and currently no plans to collect the information were discussed, so it is out of question. I do not exclude it for future, but currently it was neither discusses, nor prepared. Separate records for 25m and 50m pools are indeed registered by FIPSAS in Italy, though. It looks like the organizer is focused on the Italian way of organizing competitions.

 

[Goran Colak]

With all do respect to the organizer and Italians, the answers and "explanations" so far are nothing but ridiculous! ONLY but ONLY reason for doing this can be 6 lines in 25m pool ant the fact that Olympic pool is less then 25 yards wide... There is no other reason that can be justified and that is a FACT! I am just stunned how you do not understand that...

 

[KatFish]

I reckon 50m pools remove 10% minimum from your DNF performance - mixed with some nervous divers this tends to cause quite a few BOs. Hope the safety are ready!

Statics should be fab.

 

[StefanoMizzi]

I agree with what Will wrote in the other thread: DNF should be about swimming, not pushing from the wall.

Plus, the 25m pool is really shallow, about 1.5m.

S.