Alexey Molchanov

Alexey Molchanov is the deepest man in the history of the competitive freediving. He achieved his first world record in 2008 in a pool discipline called Dynamic Apnea, in which he swam 250m underwater with a monofin on one breath. Since then he focused on the depth disciplines and began to compete in the open water.

In 2012, he set a world record in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, when he dived to 125m using a monofin. Later that year Alexey broke his own world record with a dive to 126m in Dean's Blue Hole in The Bahamas, and at the 2013 AIDA World Championships, Alexey broke this record again. It happened in Kalamata, Greece when he dived on one breath to 128m and returned to surface under difficult conditions. He extended that record to 129m in Baja in 2016. In 2018 in the Bahamas Alexey dived 130m and set a new world record.

Overall, he has set 12 world records (8 records were set according to AIDA rules and 4 records are according to CMAS) and has earned 18 combined gold, silver, and bronze individual and team medals at world championship events.

A former nationally ranked swimmer, Alexey took up freediving as a teenager when his mother, the late Natalia Molchanova, fell in love with the sport. She would go on to develop a branded training program, which included meditative techniques and turned her into the greatest competitive freediver of all time, and transformed Russia into the freediving power. Alexey has followed her footsteps and in addition to running the Russian Freediving Federation, he is developing Molchanovs brand, which produces some of the finest freediving gear available.

An instructor, entrepreneur and top-ranked athlete, Alexey Molchanov splits his time between his homes in Moscow and Dahab, runs regular training camps in Bali, Mexico and the United States, and competes all over the world. He often brings his camera and drone along with him and you may find his underwater photos in online galleries and exhibitions.

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Summary:

• STA – 8 min. 33 sec.
• DYN – 258 m
• DNF – 195 m
• CWT – 129,7 m
• CNF – 91 m
• FIM – 114 m

Clarification:

• STA = Static Apnea. Holding the breath as long as possible.
• DYN = Dynamic Apnea with fins. Diving as far as possible with the use of fins or a monofin.
• DNF = Dynamic Apnea without fins. Diving as far as possible without fins.
• CWT = Constant weight with fins. Diving as deep as possible with the use of fins or a monofin.
• CNF = Constant weight without fins. Diving as deep as possible without fins.
• FIM = Free Immersion. Diving as deep as possible by pulling down and up the rope.

• Russian: personal page Russian Freediving Association (checked 11/19/2010)