Herbert Nitsch Recovering Well after achieving World Record depth

[DeeperBlue.com]

Herbert Nitsch’s management have issued an official statement on his recent 800ft / 244m No-Limits (NLT) world record attempt dive that ended with him being air-lifted to a decompression...

Click here for original DeeperBlue.com Post...

 

[CEngelbrecht]

That's much appreciated news. Thank you, "Bot".

 

[freeln2]

Thank you, Herbert! You did it!!

 

[chrismar]

Thank you, Herbert! You did it!!

No he didn't. He had to be assisted by his safety divers, go straight onto deep O2 and then airlifted to a hyperbaric chamber where he continues to receive treatment. I don't think you can consider that to be a success.

While I'm very glad he's still alive and hopefully will make a full recovery, this has not reassured me about the safety of deep no-limits diving.

Get better Herbert. I'll see you at the next WCs, I hope!

 

[freeln2]

He did it!!! He reached -244m on a single breath!..

 

[CEngelbrecht]

You could say that Herbert achieved the dive, he got to the target depth and re-appeared at the surface with the same air as he went down with. Patrick also suffered DCS symptoms after his 209, and people widely acknowledged that dive too. Yes, Herr Nitsch is now the 800 man.

But I really hate that big ass footnote ...

 

[Jorg]

I think herbert will be the last to say that he achieved his goal.

 

[Shark2307]

To me all of that doesn't really matter as long as he ist still alive.

Congratulations on the great dive plannings and the well working emergency plan.

His decision, his body, his life!

 

[Haydn]

He may (or may not have) fulfilled Aida protocol, but that does not mean he failed. If Aida were not there to judge the protocol, we are simply left with the concern whether he reached the target and returned un assisted. We cannot assume he was physically assisted by his safety divers. Of course if he was physically assisted then he will be the first to say so. Merely taking oxygen (after how long on the surface?) may only be breaking Aida rules. To an ordinary reasonable person, he will have successfully made the dive and it is only a protocol rule that robs him of an Aida record. It doesnt rob him of having made the dive.

An Aida World Record, it can't be, according to Aida rules, because they wern't there. That's the injustice of it all, and that's the real shame.

Sponsors are so important to sport at this level and indeed to many exciting adventures. It's a shame when they conflict and our governing body excludes themselves or the athlete has to exclude them due to sponsors requirements.

A bit like the UK Tae KwonDo Olympic team. We have the World number 1 ignored by selectors and get no 59 (ish) instead.

Somehow decisions seem a bit silly.

Herbert is the deepest by miles, not meters. We will all feel a little awkward if we make him do it all over again.

Shame about Sarah Outen (solo rower). But then again, doing it all over again.....thats how we best silence the doubters.

Most of all, best wishes to Herbert. It was inspiring and you will inspire us all, yet again, somewhere else, somewhere wet.

 

[FreeRestriction]

If you require additional equipment like oxygen in a tank or a helicopter ride to a decompression chamber that dosent show an expanding depth thought to be beyond that which the human body can achieve. It shows that human technology can aide in increasing the maximum possible depth. Then again its no limits so were no longer talking about human body capabilities alone to begin with. So if its no limits it sounds like a helicopter rides included.

So with all that said id say he achieved his goal. Assuming he did hit 800 ft.

 

[Jorg]

I wonder if he died in the hospital the marketing guys still claimed the record, because he WAS down there...

 

[CEngelbrecht]

I tried to explain a former girlfriend the DQ rules with blackout and such once, and she replied 'Ok, so if you die, you're disqualified?"

But now we're getting morbid. Heaven forbid.

 

[Jorg]

Yes true, difficult and morbid subject. Remember Audrey? The IAFD at that time also gave her the record afterwards.

I'm just glad he's okay...

 

[efattah]

If you require additional equipment like oxygen in a tank

All freediving records are now followed by a decompression stop at 6m on pure oxygen (from a tank). If you exclude this, then the last constant weight record (for example) without this was probably Carlos Coste's 105m set around 2005.

I have pioneered the method called 'apnea deco', the concept of going back down immediately after the dive while holding your breath, to do deco without scuba bottles; this does work but is not as effective as doing it with enriched oxygen. It is also extraordinarily unpleasant; often more painful than the deep dive itself.

If the rules disallowed decompression after the dive, then records would have ended around 2005 and any attempt to break them would have resulted in lifelong paralysis, neurological damage, and so on. So, for those of you who (in your mind) think it is cheating to deco after the dive, then for you, records ended in 2005.

 

[FreeRestriction]

All freediving records are now followed by a decompression stop at 6m on pure oxygen (from a tank). If you exclude this, then the last constant weight record (for example) without this was probably Carlos Coste's 105m set around 2005.

I have pioneered the method called 'apnea deco', the concept of going back down immediately after the dive while holding your breath, to do deco without scuba bottles; this does work but is not as effective as doing it with enriched oxygen. It is also extraordinarily unpleasant; often more painful than the deep dive itself.

If the rules disallowed decompression after the dive, then records would have ended around 2005 and any attempt to break them would have resulted in lifelong paralysis, neurological damage, and so on. So, for those of you who (in your mind) think it is cheating to deco after the dive, then for you, records ended in 2005.

Interesting i did not know that it was common practice to stop and breath from a tank. This is kind of a let down quite honestly as ive always so proudly told people how amazingly people dive very deep all on a single breath. Clearly i was wrong as it seems thats not the case after a certain depth.

This confuses me as herbert appearantly surfaced and then went back down to breath from oxygen. Why did he surface if he already had a tank to breath from? Maybe he had to throw up? Or am i understanding this wrong? The diver stops on the way up and breaths from a tank. He dosent surface and then go back down to decompress right? All the deep dives ive watched on video the diver swims all the way to the suface on his own breath.

 

[ThomasB]

Interesting i did not know that it was common practice to stop and breath from a tank. This is kind of a let down quite honestly as ive always so proudly told people how amazingly people dive very deep all on a single breath. Clearly i was wrong as it seems thats not the case after a certain depth.

This confuses me as herbert appearantly surfaced and then went back down to breath from oxygen. Why did he surface if he already had a tank to breath from? Maybe he had to throw up?

You are gettin it Wrong . The dive is on a single breath, then, after surfacing from the dive, they go back down for a deco stop breathing Oxigen for safety reason.

 

[FreeRestriction]

You are gettin it Wrong . The dive is on a single breath, then, after surfacing from the dive, they go back down for a deco stop breathing Oxigen for safety reason.

Ok that makes sense. In that case its not as much of a "cheat" but still weve obviously exceeded that which a human can do unassisted in this sport.
edit: its hard to define it as freediving when you need pure oxygen after the fact to survive the dive. I hope im not offending anyone by saying that but its how i feel.

 

[trux]

Wishing Herb a speedy recovery (that he seems to be indeed doing)! And despite the result, it was an amazing stunt, of course. Just, of course, I am with Jorg, that Herb will be certainly the last calling it achieved goal, or claiming a WR.

For those who do not agree, a few examples of failed world records despite "achieved goals":

- Stephan Mifsud's WR of 8'24" in 2004 was revoked five months later (and after having paid 500€ for the doping control), because the AIDA board found out later that the OK sign was not recorded on the official video

- Tom Sietas STA WR of 9:24 in 2004 in Vancouver disqulified because of mask with tinted lenses, and a touch by cheering friends

- Martin Stepanek's CNF of 83m in 2007 WR status rejected because he did not bring a tag. DQ despite that the present judges confirmed in advance the tag was not needed since bottom cameras were present.

- Tom Sietas disqualified after STA of 10'12" in 2008, because the safety diver tapped him lightly on the shoulder to congratulate him

- Natalia Molchanova's WR's of 101m in CWT removed in 2010, a year after the attmpt, because of a suspected conflict of interests of the main judge (Bill Stromberg), despite no wrongdoing on the side of the athlete

- Goran Colak's 273m DYN in Lignano 2011 - disqualified because of a light erronous touch by the safety diver. Fortunately this DQ was revoked later, but only because the touch was not visible on the official video.

- Will Trubridge's 125m CWT in 2012 disqualified because he did not complete the protocol within 15s


- Dave Mullins wonderfull 232m DNF from 2009 are no WR just because the competition did not have the WR status

- same goes for the records of Stepahen Mifsud or Branko Petrovic - their performances are or were no WR, just NR, despite being better than the WR's in their time

... I think I could continue much longer, since I am sure there were many other similar cases.

 

[watts]

Does anyone know how big the aqex is now?

 

[Simos]

Interesting i did not know that it was common practice to stop and breath from a tank. This is kind of a let down quite honestly as ive always so proudly told people how amazingly people dive very deep all on a single breath. Clearly i was wrong as it seems thats not the case after a certain depth.

This confuses me as herbert appearantly surfaced and then went back down to breath from oxygen. Why did he surface if he already had a tank to breath from? Maybe he had to throw up? Or am i understanding this wrong? The diver stops on the way up and breaths from a tank. He dosent surface and then go back down to decompress right? All the deep dives ive watched on video the diver swims all the way to the suface on his own breath.

Firstly wishing Herbert a speedy and full recovery - was such a relief to read the latest news.

As mentioned above the dive is on one breath - as far as I know and understand, there are actually 2 'deco' phases: the first before the athlete surfaces, he gets out of the sled at certain depth, does a shorter deco stop on apnea and surfaces slowly.

The second (after SP etc) is diving back down and breathing O2 at a certain depth (obviously you understand that this is more of a bend and mend approach).

From the few words that were announced on the day of the record, it would seem to imply that Herbert felt unwell from the first 'deco' so the safety procedure was put in motion and the safety divers assisted him to the surface. After that he got O2, went down for deco etc

Relevant extract from Herb's blog:

He did however feel physically unstable upon reaching the depth of 10 meters, which was the planned stop for him to exit the sled and start his decompression routine. According to the drills and safety procedures that had been thoroughly trained and rehearsed, his safety divers then assisted him back up to the surface