Herbert Nitsch


Herbert Nitsch is an Austrian freediver, the current freediving world record champion, and "the deepest man on earth" having dived to a depth of.
Nitsch has held 33 world records across eight freediving disciplines recognised by AIDA International and one in the traditional Greek discipline of Skandalopetra.

Competitive freediving

During his career, Nitsch has held 32 world records across eight AIDA-recognised disciplines: Dynamic Apnea, Dynamic apnea without fins, Static Apnea, Constant Weight, Constant Weight without Fins, Free Immersion, Variable Weight, and No-Limits. Currently AIDA is no longer involved in No-Limits events.

Dynamic Apnea and Dynamic without Fins

Nitsch's first Dynamic Apnea record made in January of 2001 was also the first world record with a monofin. Prior to that, bi-fins were used. His last Dynamic Apnea record of set in 2002, was bested by Tom Sietas.
During Nitsch's first Dynamic without Fins record of, he introduced the neckweight. The neckweight allowed him to swim more horizontally and hydrodynamically underwater compared to a weight belt around the waist. Tom Sietas beat Nitsch's last 2001 distance of.

Constant Weight and Constant Weight without Fins

Nitsch also held the world record in the Constant Weight event, which is considered by many to be the classic free-diving discipline: the diver descends next to a line, not using the line and unaided by a sled, and must maintain a constant weight, meaning that no weight can be dropped for the return to the surface.
Nitsch exceeded the then world record depth in 2006 when he dived to a depth of, but failure to complete the strict surfacing protocols within the allotted time meant that the dive was disqualified.
In Hurghada, Egypt, in December 2006, he set a Constant Weight world record dive of, exceeding Guillaume Néry's previous record by 2 m.
In April 2009 he set a Constant Weight world record Vertical Blue competition at the Dean's Blue Hole in the Bahamas of and. In 2010 he improved this to respectively and at the same location.
His record of for Constant Weight without Fins, set in 2004, was beaten by 14 m in 2005 by Czech free-diver, Martin Štěpánek.
In October of 2007, he set the Constant Weight without Fins record to during The Triple Depth in Dahab, Egypt, and went on to push the Constant Weight record to during the World Championships in Sharm. Herbert also won the AIDA Individual World Championships.

Static Apnea

Nitsch set a time of 9 mins 4 secs for the world Static Apnea record in December 2006 when he held his breath underwater in a swimming pool in Hurgada.

Free Immersion and Variable Weight

Nitsch dove to a Free Immersion world record of in September 2003, but his record was bettered by a dive of 101 m by Carlos Coste of Venezuela in October the same year and then twice improved upon by Štěpánek.
During the 2009 Vertical Blue competition at the Dean's Blue Hole in the Bahamas in April, Nitsch set the Free Immersion world record at, which he improved later that year to, and in 2010 to and on the last day of the competition, beating by 6 m the previous record that he had set a few days earlier. He used his arms only in the last of this ascent, with a total dive time of 3:58.
In December of 2009 at the Dean's Blue Hole in the Bahamas, Nitsch broke three world records in three subsequent days: Variable Weight at ; Free Immersion at ; and Constant Weight at.

Retirement

During his last competition before retiring from competitive freediving, in April 2010 at Vertical Blue again at the Dean's Blue Hole in Bahamas, Nitsch set another three world records. He landed two subsequent ones in Free Immersion at and, and a world record in Constant Weight at.
Nitsch focused solely on the No Limit discipline after this, in which the record attempts fall outside of regulated competition.

No Limit freediving

Nitsch holds the No-Limits record and the title of "Deepest man on Earth" in which the diver uses a weighted sled to descend as far as possible and uses an air-filled balloon or other buoyancy device to return to the surface.

World record

Nitsch set the No Limit world record in Spetses, Greece in June 2007 when he descended to, beating his own subsequent records of respectively,, and.

Later attempt and serious injury

In 2012, Nitsch returned to the "No Limit" category in the waters off Santorini, Greece, with a project labeled "Extreme 800", aiming for a depth of.
Following extensive training using an innovative torpedo-type sled design of very high descend and ascend speed, on 6 June 2012, Nitsch managed to reach a depth of, a Guinness World Record, but ten minutes after the dive he began experiencing serious symptoms of decompression sickness. Nitsch temporarily fell asleep due to nitrogen narcosis during the last part of the ascent, and woke up prior to reaching the surface. Following a planned post-dive decompression, breathing medical oxygen at a shallow depth, he signaled to his support team that he felt much weaker than normal and his condition was assessed as critical enough to require an air transfer to a pre-alerted decompression chamber in Athens, where he received treatment. He incurred multiple brain strokes due to severe decompression sickness. He subsequently received extensive decompression treatment in Germany.
The initial prognosis was that he would need home care and be unable to walk without assistance. However, through extensive rehabilitation, he made a strong recovery. He still has balance and coordination problems on land, but does not experience them underwater. He continues to deep free-dive.

Other career

Nitsch also worked as a pilot and Captain for Tyrolean Airways for fifteen years. He flew full-time from 1995 until 2008, and thereafter part-time until late 2010.

Awards and honors

The asteroid 295471 Herbertnitsch, discovered by Italian amateur astronomer Vincenzo Casulli in 2008, was named in his honor. The official was published by the Minor Planet Center on 27 August 2019.

Official records

Nitsch remains to date the only person that achieved world records across all of AIDA's eight freediving disciplines, in addition to the one he had set in the Greek discipline of Skandalopetra.
apneaFederationRecordDateLocation
DNFAIDA27 January 2001Geneva
DYNAIDA24 February 2001Geneva
CWTAIDA*16 June 2001Millstätter See
CWTAIDA11 October 2001Ibiza
DYNAIDA10 November 2001Berlin
DNFAIDA24 November 2001Wiesbaden
DYNAIDA2 February 2002Vienna
FIMAIDA27 February 2002Austria
DYNAIDA16 November 2002Berlin
FIMAIDA5 September 2003Millstätter See
CWTAIDA5 September 2003Millstätter See
CNFAIDA6 September 2003Millstätter See
CNFAIDA11 September 2004Spetses
CNFAIDA12 September 2004Spetses
NLTAIDA2 October 2005Žirje
NLTAIDA28 August 2006Žirje
CWTAIDA9 December 2006Hurghada
STAAIDA9 min 04 sec13 December 2006Hurghada
NLTAIDA13 June 2007Spetses
NLTAIDA14 June 2007Spetses
CNFAIDA21 October 2007Dahab
CWTAIDA1 November 2007Sharm
CWTAIDA4 April 2009Long Island
FIMAIDA6 April 2009Long Island
CWTAIDA11 April 2009Long Island
SKA26 June 2009Lindos
VWTAIDA7 December 2009Long Island
FIMAIDA8 December 2009Long Island
CWTAIDA9 December 2009Long Island
FIMAIDA19 April 2010Long Island
CWTAIDA22 April 2010Long Island
FIMAIDA25 April 2010Long Island
NLTGuinness WR6 June 2012Santorini

72m = AIDA Lake Record; after 2001-12-31 AIDA International no longer separated the records achieved in a lake from those in the sea.

Personal bests

Filmography

;Documentaries and TV
  • 2017: Herbert Nitsch, The Deepest Man On Earth, by UPROXX –
  • 2016: Supertalent Mensch: Körperbeherrscher, by Terra X –
  • 2013: Back from the Abyss / Züruck as der Tiefe, the multiple award-winning documentary by Red Bull Media House - Trailer Back from the Abyss: and
  • 2012: La Dernière Frontière, by Camera Lucida -
  • 2011: The man who can hold his breath for nine minutes – Inside the Human Body: First to Last, by BBC One-
  • 2009: Apnoetauchen: Neun Minuten ohne einen Atemzug, by Focus Online –
  • 2009: Stefan Raab by TV Total
  • 2009: Aeschbacher by SRF
;Publicity
  • 2017: Hyundai Fuel Cell Car Unveiling, by Hyundai - and
  • 2011: Extreme 800, by Breitling -