Freediving Competitions: It’s Not Just About Winning

I didn’t go into depth competitions to win.

Surrounded by athletes diving over 100 meters, I felt out of place. Embarrassed, even. Names like Fatima, Alenka, Florian, and Alexey were on the start lists. I was just hoping to make it to depth and back without unraveling.

I wasn’t there for medals or glory.
I was there to see if I could do it.

To find out who I was when the pressure rose.
To see if I could enjoy it as much as I enjoy training.
To find out if I could trust myself.

A Mirror, Not a Race

Competing didn’t feel like a battle against others. It felt more like a mirror. Where does my mind go when I’m standing on the platform, alone, heart thumping?

Can I still love the dive when no one is watching?
Can I smile underwater, even when I’m nervous?
Can I enjoy it—really enjoy it—even when it’s hard?

And if not, will I push through? Or will I walk away?

These were the questions that mattered more than rankings.

And the answers came, not all at once, but in the quiet before the dive. In the long glides through blue. In the split second before the tag. In the stillness of the surface protocol.

According to a 2022 study on psychological resilience in high-pressure underwater sports, athletes who competed with a mindset of curiosity and self-awareness reported lower anxiety and improved outcomes compared to those focused solely on performance. Source

More Than I Expected

I did better than I thought.

Set a few new personal bests. Even claimed some national records. But that wasn’t the win.

The win was in the moments between dives. The deep belly laughs in the athlete tent. The eye contact from a safety diver before my countdown. The late-night coconut with people who once intimidated me but now felt like teammates.

Those are the moments I carry with me.
Not the tags. Not the scores.
The photos. The friendships. The stillness I found in the deep.

Why I’ll Keep Competing

Not to prove anything.
But to meet myself again and again.

To check in with my edges.
To remember how strong I can be.
To keep asking the questions I first asked when I started this sport.

I’ve written before about how to compete without chasing numbers and what it means to make progress without pressure. This was an extension of that.

Competition became a kind of ceremony. A space to test how much I trust myself. Not how deep I can go.

That mindset has changed the way I train, the way I recover, and the way I connect with others.

So no, it’s not just about winning.

It never was.

---

Want to explore the competition mindset more? Read: Competing Against Yourself: The Real Mental Game of Freediving, What Freediving Taught Me About Patience, Pressure, and Progress, or How to Start Organizing a Freediving Pool Competition.