- This Saturday, at the Derval swimming pool, Pascal Mazé will try to beat a new record, do the maximum lengths (of the 25 m pool) in one hour and in dynamic apnea.
- The lifeguard of the Derval swimming pool has been multiplying records for years ... still freediving.
- To achieve his exploits, he practices meditation and yoga daily.
Pascal Mazé saw his nose blocked. For twenty-five years he has been training in freediving and attempting records at regular intervals. This trained nurse, now a lifeguard at the Derval swimming pool in Loire-Atlantique, simply says "he finds a lot of pleasure" there. This Saturday, at his place of work, he will try to beat a new record: "to do the maximum lengths (of the 25 m pool) in one hour and in dynamic apnea, either by walking", he explains. At each end of the pitch, obviously, he's not a superman, Pascal Mazé will take a few seconds of breathing. Another challenge for this 48-year-old athlete.
For several decades, the man who arrived in Derval from Guingamp four years ago has been collecting aquatic prowess. "I created, initiated records", he slips. Some have been beaten, some have not. Some have been certified by the Alternative Book of Records (a much less known and recognized equivalent of the Guinness Book of Records ), others not . He lists his exploits: “I had the first record for the hour in single fin, in dynamic apnea (126 lengths). The first record in static apnea (3 hours, with 2h42 in apnea over these 3 hours). The first freediving “crawl” swimming record (76 lengths). "Pascal Mazé likes to" create records where the qualities of the endurance freediver join the qualities of the swimmer ".
He also does this for a friend with Parkinson's disease
In February, in Derval, he had (again) been talked about by beating the world record for walking at the bottom of the water in dynamic apnea by covering 84 meters, or 5 meters more than the previous record held by a Turk .
To afford all these feats, Pascal Mazé does not skimp on daily preparation. He thus practices meditation every day in order to better listen to his body and to avoid accidents - such as syncope, a greater risk for freedivers. “Meditation is essential for freediving because it allows you to really get to know yourself, to control yourself, not to disperse yourself. We learn to recognize our inner signals that tell us it's time to breathe. The practice of yoga is also part of his daily life. In 2019, he published a book, Sport and Conscience in which he discusses the physical, emotional and spiritual benefits of sport.
This Saturday, at 10 am, "with his swimsuit, his glasses and weighted with a weight belt of 7 kg", he will not only attempt a new record. The sporting feat is also organized for the benefit of the association Vaincre Parkinson . “I have a very good lifeguard friend who has the disease,” he says. At the exit of the swimming pool, at 11:30 am, he will also hold a press conference (open to the public) on the theme (possibility of making donations on site). No doubt crowned with a new record. One more.
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- Sport
- Swimming
- Guinness book of records
- World record
- Apnea
- Record