Born and brought up in Goa with the sea as perennial company, Mario Fernandes dreamed of becoming a commercial diver and took to scuba diving. But the cost of learning and honing skills proved to be prohibitive, so he turned to free diving – a pursuit that he was to excel at, even to the extent of setting records.
What is free diving? It’s an adventure sport that tests the
strength of one’s lungs. It entails going as far deep into the sea for as long
as possible without the aid of breathing apparatus.
Mario, 35, has made a mark in the sport, having registered depth
and time measures that have set four national records. He achieved those feats
in Israel where he competed in the AIDA (International Association for the
Development of Apnoea) event in May, 2022.
The first Dynamic with Bi-Fins (DYNB) in which he shattered
64mtrs mark by 86mtrs in the pool discipline.
Here, a diver travels in a horizontal position underwater
(typically in a pool) with a propulsion aid such as bi-fins in an effort to
cover the greatest distance possible.
In the second, Static Apnoea (STA), Mario rewrote the record by
registering 4minutes, 29 seconds to eclipse 4 minutes, 11 seconds.
This discipline
requires divers to hold their breath for as long as possible, floating face
down with respiratory tracts submerged. This is the only discipline where
performance is measured by duration.
He now sets himself
to better his own record in STA with his current capacity to hold his breath
for a stupendous 7 minutes!
Mario is also the
first Indian to compete in the depth challenge, setting a new Indian record in
his first attempt for CONSTANT Weight with Bi-Fins (CWTB), logging 45m with a
dive time of 1 min, 40 sec.
In this event, the
diver descends using bi-fins, typically a wetsuit and a small amount of weight.
The diver is not allowed to pull on any guide ropes or change the weight used.
In the Free Immersion
(FIM) event, he created a national record of 40m depth with a dive time of 1
minute, 35 seconds. This discipline is similar to Constant Weight No Fins in
that the diver uses only a wetsuit and a small amount of weight. However, in
this case, the diver can only use the guide rope for propulsion
A former first
division footballer, Mario has also been part of wildlife rescue initiatives.
He, however, wasn’t too happy with how his life panned out. Scuba diving gave
him an outlet and although he didn’t persist with the occupation, he found a
viable alternative.
“I was exposed to the
world and began learning about free diving. However, there was no free diving
instructor in India so I stayed with scuba diving to learn more.
“Over a period of
time I did courses in Goa and became an assistant instructor following which I
went to Thailand.
“On my return to
India, I met Milena Mezhuieva of the Ukraine, the then world number one in
underwater target shooting, a pool discipline. I was lucky to meet her in Goa
when she visited the dive centre.
“Also a spear fishing
instructor, she was preparing for her championship. Later, her friend who was
the top spear fishing champion in Russia joined her and I free dived with him a
lot.
“I did several
courses in Thailand at Blue Immersion -- one of the top free diving schools --
and reached the level of instructor”.
In time, Mario became
the first Indian instructor at the highest level in free diving. Returning to
India, he commenced work in the Andaman Islands as a scuba instructor.
Mario worked in the
Andaman Islands for eight years during which he met and connected with many
free diving world champions who came to India to learn yoga and improve their
athletic performance. But, never had he imagined the potential of free diving
in India.
This led Mario to
take on competitive free diving more seriously in an endeavour to put his
country on the global map.
Over the last five
weeks, Mario trained with Aharon Solomons, an 83-year old Israeli who has
trained many elite freediving athletes and a world Record holder. In March, he
went to Israel and attempted a national record. Covid-19 prevented him crossing
the border to Egypt for the world championship but in another event in Israel,
he broke free diving national records in the pool.
Currently, he runs
Freedive India, his own freediving school to take a beginner step by step
towards becoming an Elite Freedivers. Mario’s vast knowledge and experience
makes learning Freediving a spectacular and enriching experience for Freedivers
at any level.
He systematically
identifies problematic aspects and has structured a series of dives to address
those areas, providing feedback on performance after each.
Speaking about his
experience as a teacher, he said, “Yes, at first, there is stress but every
time the student goes in and surfaces, there is a big smile on his/her face.
“The instructor is
very important here. If the student does not feel good underwater, he or she
can immediately turn back and come up.
“It is also important
to not exaggerate the danger in free diving. More people die crossing the
road!”
Mario is still
actively involved in wildlife and marine rescues around Goa and spends some of
his free time educating the fishing community across Goa and Mahabalipuram on
sustainable fishing methods.
A
man of many parts he may be, but Mario’s heart yearns for further daunting
challenges in the deep.