Detecting Cheating in Freediving - Static

[Kars]

Detecting Cheating in Freediving - Static:
Improving trust in regulations and performances.


Dear Freediver.

With the growing of our beloved sport Freediving I feel there has come a need for more trust in the verification of performances.

To keep our sport clean and fair, we have to expend our understanding and maybe some of our regulations concerning cheaters.
Understanding it is impossible to make rules to prevent all cheating, the goal I feel should be to make cheating difficult and expensive enough to keep most from even attempting.

In order to help AIDA in grow to a new level judging professionalism worthy of our earned trust, we can help by making a list of cheats and prevention rules.

To make this an efficient an useful thread I think we should:

- take one discipline at the time.
- list the easy -known- cheats first.
- distillate all solutions into, practical, affordable, easy prevention rules.

I think the format for a post effectively could be the condensed:

(Number*)Cheat - Solution(s)

I invite all freedivers, Jury members, trainers and magicians to help create a thorough list and expend our understanding of all the cheats in order to keep our beloved sport clean and fair.


Let's start off with the hottest discipline at the moment; STATIC.

Thank you all for your help Deeperblue members! :inlove

Kars

(* Please make the number following the previous cheat posts, make sure it's cheat not yet listed)

 

[Arjen]

higher percentage of O2:

No man made machinery outside what is brought by the judges in the area where the record takes places. All machinery can be adapted to contain an O2 bottle which can be concealed very well and give off a stream of pure O2. The athlete will not breath pure O2 but will breath a percentage significantly higher than 21%.

No attempts in pool owned by either the athlete, a family member or a friend/coach. An O2 system delivery system can be concealed in the pool. Same reason as above.

Solution: All attempts are to be made in a public pool and the judges will mark the area in the pool where the attempt has to take place. The athlete has to do his final preparation from 45 min to OT in this area and is not allowed to go outside this area. The athlete has no say in the location of the area. The area can not have any form of grill, pipe or other opening in the side. Outside the judges, the coach, a medic and the athlete, no one is allowed to get within 2 meters of this area. No machine except the video camera's the judges have to bring and an O2 set for medical purposes, is allowed in the area.

The athlete is not allowed to have a mask, only swimming goggles and a nose clip are allowed. The athlete is allowed to use a snorkel for the warm up and the breath up but as soon as the attempt starts, the coach has to give the snorkel to the judges. The athlete is allowed to wear a suit, but it has to be inspected by the judges to see if there are no hidden tubes before it is worn, the judges have to be present when the suit is put on for the same reason. There has to be a video of the face of the athlete continually from 45 min to OT to 5 min after the attempt, including the attempt (under water camera)

This sounds harsh but it is the only way to be absolutely sure that you can't cheat. The only possibility left would be doping or the extraordinary measure to rig a whole public pool, which I think is not probable, or an incredible amount of luck that the system used by the cheater is in precisely the right place, which is also highly unlikely. If any infraction no matter how small, the attempt is invalid.

This measures would make it extremely hard to cheat in STA with O2 or extra inhalation of air. In this case, you could only use doping as far as I can see now.

 

[efattah]

If you allow the athlete to use a snorkel, you could fit a tiny O2 cylinder in the snorkel, more than enough to yield a litre of pure oxygen.

I like to use a snorkel in static, I find it much more relaxing, but the truth is that it creates another way to cheat.

 

[Jorg]

Good topic! But if you consider going this way with the rules, I can only say: there goes the sport!

Unfortunately we have arrived at a point where we know that there are cheaters and dopers walking around, just because it's worth it in these days. Was ego alone already enough to get a few started, the money given to some top freedivers make it very worthwhile to do.

 

[Arjen]

If you allow the athlete to use a snorkel, you could fit a tiny O2 cylinder in the snorkel, more than enough to yield a litre of pure oxygen.

I like to use a snorkel in static, I find it much more relaxing, but the truth is that it creates another way to cheat.

Yes, but it would also be highly detectable. The only action that has to be taken before and after the snorkel is used is a check by the judges. The other problem is that an object in the snorkel makes it much harder to breath trough. So much that your breath up for any prolonged time can not be relaxed anymore. If someone only used the snorkel for the last part of the final breath up or switched snorkels, I would be suspicious, otherwise I think this method would cause more troubles for the athlete than it would solve.

 

[Jon]

Everyone needs to be naked- including the judges.

This way no one can hide anything anywhere. I bet news coverage would go up as a result.

Jon

 

[Mullins]

The only possibility left would be doping or the extraordinary measure to rig a whole public pool, which I think is not probable,

How about a spectator bringing in a bag with an O2 cylinder inside? Given oxygen is slightly heavier than air, cracking that open a short time before OT would give you a nice layer of O2-enriched air to breathe from (especially since the pool surface is often slightly lower than the surrounding floor). They wouldn't have to be very close to the athlete. There would be plenty of diffusion but you only need to raise pp02 slightly in order to provide a large increase in performance. Somebody mentioned using an O2 meter for all attempts, this sounds like a simple and cheap way of preventing enriched air from being used. If it was close to the athlete's head it could pick up any leakage from other concealed sources. Would have been useful in Merlini's case.

Edit: I suppose your 'no man-made machinery' requirement would cover this, but it would need to be applied to everybody in the vicinity.

 

[titan]

for more procedures that you make the "ceptical" wants that those performances wouldn't be valid (I can't you can't syndrome)

I think AIDA as done their job
but I found more useful and important to change some rules don't we agree?!?!

now we need to stop with the record attempts and focus mores in education and ecological issues, more, more and more publicity for the sport not only freedive but also scuba
You don't think that if the people know about this what we know, if they saw these experiences as we do, they wouldn't join ou community?!?!?

 

[Bill McIntyre]

Given that I'm not a competitive freediver, and given that I haven't paid much attention, I'm surprised to learn that cheating is actually a concern in the sport.

But then since I'm a cynic, I guess I'm surprised that I'm surprised. How could I have been so naive? I long ago lost interest in competitive cycling and baseball because of doping and cheating, but at least there is really big money at stake in those sports. Perhaps I just don't realize how much money is at stake in competitive freediving. I still have to believe that its petty change compared to being at the top of baseball, but then it doesn't take much to cause some of us to cheat.

Anyway, I'll confess that freedive records were not of much interest to me in the first place, but now that I've read this thread, they mean even less.

In some small way, I'd like to think my indifference will reduce the incentive and pay off for cheating. But then I already admitted to being naive.

 

[Arjen]

How about a spectator bringing in a bag with an O2 cylinder inside? Given oxygen is slightly heavier than air, cracking that open a short time before OT would give you a nice layer of O2-enriched air to breathe from (especially since the pool surface is often slightly lower than the surrounding floor). They wouldn't have to be very close to the athlete. There would be plenty of diffusion but you only need to raise pp02 slightly in order to provide a large increase in performance. Somebody mentioned using an O2 meter for all attempts, this sounds like a simple and cheap way of preventing enriched air from being used. If it was close to the athlete's head it could pick up any leakage from other concealed sources. Would have been useful in Merlini's case.

Edit: I suppose your 'no man-made machinery' requirement would cover this, but it would need to be applied to everybody in the vicinity.

You are absolutely right, but I also think to have that covered, because I would not allow anyone in the immediate vicinity of the athlete in the first place. Everyone has to stay a minimal distance away from the area where the record takes place. Somebody would have to take a large cylinder of pure O2 with him to crank up the ppO2 in the athlete area. That is not easy to hide and it would be very difficult to disperse the O2 in such a way that you would actually notice it in the competition area. So both the man made machinery and the distance from the area where the attempt takes place would cover this I think, but two or three added O2 meters in the athlete area would not be a bad idea to make absolutely sure. (One is not enough, it can fail and O2 meters can be notoriously unreliable, they have to be calibrated a lot for them to be accurate. For a foolproof system you should actually have three properly calibrated sensors at every point you measure the O2)

 

[jay cluskey]

If you allow the athlete to use a snorkel, you could fit a tiny O2 cylinder in the snorkel, more than enough to yield a litre of pure oxygen.

I like to use a snorkel in static, I find it much more relaxing, but the truth is that it creates another way to cheat.

let the competition organizers supply the snorkel at a cost

 

[jay cluskey]

how long before the layer of 02 dissapeared if it was there?

i only became aware of 2 rules 2 weeks ago at my first comp 1 was i should of been visible by the pool 45 mins before my event , this i was told was so that i could not breathe up on any o2
and the second one was surface protocol:rcard i got my first red card

 

[superdude171]

To Mullins,
During a recent first aid course I remember learning that after O2 reaches over roughly 25% of air volume the air actually becomes flammable. This would make it incredibly dangerous to do anything like this, as any spark even in a light switch could ignite the air. Hopefully this alone would rule out this form of cheating. I am not 100% sure of this though so please correct me.

 

[Mullins]

The air itself won't become flammable (it can't oxidise itself), but anything else that is flammable will catch fire much more easily. Yes, I'm sure it would be very dangerous.

 

[jay cluskey]

you are right about flammability .
the o2 would need to have a source of ignition to do this ,an electrical malfunction or naked flame , not sure about intense heat though .
i attended 2 house fires a couple of years back , both were caused by the exact same problem.
2 ladies both of whom had suffered with emphysema both of them were smoking whilst on an oxygen mask.
a large whooosh ensued he he

 

[Kars]

1) Snorkel containing O2 container;
solutions:

A - banning of snorkels,
B - checking before,
C - Jury providing snorkel,
D - Transparent snorkel.
​

2) Suit of athlete and coach containing 02 container:

A - Suit check + Observed changing into suit until performance
B - Suit check right after performance (could be part of doping procedure)
​

3) Pool preparations:

A - Checking pool right before competition starts. (could include O2 measurements) - During and after Performance (ditched 02 containers / holes in wall and drafts)
​

4) Hand carried O2 devices:

A - Only allow equipment needed for freediving in the competition zone, and have fluid containers (drinks) checked. The organisational O2 physician is excluded of cause and stays always behind the jury, not near the pools edge.​

5) Swallowed O2 devices:

A - Forbidding exhaling during apnea​

6) Breathing through mask:

A - forbidding use of mask.
B - Mask should remain submerged during whole apnea.
​

7) Breathing through regular airways (Mouth and Nose) :

A - Observation of athlete by jury from each side.
B - Bottom camera
C - Mirror?​

8) Breathing through Tear-ducts:

A - Eyes must remain submerged.​

9) Breathing through Ears:

A- Ears must remain submerged.​

10) Doping:

A - Doping test after performance.​

---

Record Status.

Some of the enhanced anti cheat measurements may consume too much time and resources for little local or national competitions. The National AIDA branch can help by having their National standards.
However, for recognition as the AIDA World Record, in any World Record status event - Record attempt and Competition, I think it's very reasonable to have the Judges take the utmost care no cheating has occurred during their presence.

Long(er) term:

A doping test should help to detect long term substance abuse.

Qualification:

Athlete need to qualify for a World Record attempt by having done a AIDA (national) validated performance of -a percentage- of the current WR in the year running up to the date of the attempt.

Verification:

- Identity,
- Rapport and check-list from AIDA Judges.
- Sealed athletes urine sample and lab report.
- Video footage, surface camera + bottom camera*?

* The price of some simple small UW camera's capable of 640x480 video is coming down.


Ok, People don't tell me there are not any more Static cheats, bring 'm on!

Kars

 

[efattah]

Kars -- excellent post.

Also, considering EPO cannot be tested during the record, since the athlete has already stopped taking it, then perhaps you announce the record three months in advance, and during that time there are random EPO tests?

 

[Kars]

Well Eric, Who do you have to do the sample taking? - Having two foreign juries come over two times, and doing two tests is getting pretty costly.

Do you have some more creative idea's, cheats and solutions, keeping the practical in mind? - It's hard to believe the list is so short and the solutions are so.. simple.

Also the Official video should be made public by AIDA, upon ratifying the performance as the new AIDA World Record.

Kars

 

[Jorg]

Keep in mind that professional athletes are being 'followed' everywhere they go. They have to fill in a list where they will be for the next 2 weeks every 2 weeks! And I don't mean on a day to day basis, but much more precise.

At 14:00 hours on Tuesday I will be at the dentist. And sometimes doping controllers will come by and control. Even when somebody is on vacation. The local doping agency can then send people to take their samples.

In short: if you're a professional, you don't have a personal life or any privacy! You can't miss a test or you will be in trouble.

For example, in cycling the ICU has setup a bio passport for all professional cyclists. This so you can see how certain values change and behave and certain big changes can be intercepted.

The current AIDA doping test doesn't mean anything! It's just a show. If someone gets caught by this doping test, they are so stupid!!! AIDA uses the cheapest test possible, which is without EPO test, and it's only after the performance that someone is tested. Just a waste of money! Do it right, or don't do it at all.

And everybody who still believes that our sport is 'clean' and without doping; please wake up! There is enough reason for taking it for some people: Besides money and endorsement purposes, the Ego is a very big thing.

 

[rxcnc2]

1) Snorkel containing O2 container;

Insert lit match in the snorkel
​

2) Suit of athlete and coach containing 02 container:

coach and athlete must be naked during 24 hours
prior to attempt
​

3) Pool preparations:

Location of competition is secret until 10 minutes
before first official warm-up
​

4) Hand carried O2 devices:

All competitors are allowed only
a 1-liter transparent zip-bag
​

5) Swallowed O2 devices:

All competitors must vomit in
front of judges before warm-up​

6) Breathing through mask:

head of competitor is wrapped in a plastic bag
prior to attempt
​

7) Breathing through regular airways (Mouth and Nose) :

did you possibly forget another airway?
​

8) Breathing through Tear-ducts:

The competitor must cry during
the whole duration​

9) Breathing through Ears:

competitor must wear closed earphones
(and listen to loud didgeridoo during whole attempt,
which helps with #8)
​

(change didgeridoo to whatever is most irritating to you)

10) Doping:

Judges must have access to bank accounts of
competitors in the six months prior to event
​