Following his gripping world record attempt, champion freediver William Trubridge has been crowned the Suunto Vertical Blue champion for 2014.
The former Havelock North man, fresh off his attempt at a world record freedive, retained his title as champion and the best freediver in the world in the Bahamas during the weekend.
The 34-year-old won the competition ahead of Russian Alexey Molchanov with a constant weight apnea dive (with fins), to a depth of 117m and in a time of just three minutes and nine seconds.
"I think this was one of the fastest dives I've ever done at that range," he later told Deeper Blue, an online diving magazine. "I knew I had it in the bag when I heard the safety divers give me a grouper call, and I thought it seemed so early to see them."
Trubridge also achieved a 120m free immersion dive during the competition, helping him beat the Russian by just under 10 points in the final competition standings. His world record in the free immersion dive category also remained at 121m.
Trubridge, the organiser of the event, last Wednesday attempted to break his freedive record and reach a depth of 102m in Dean's Blue Hole, a giant sinkhole off the coast of the Bahamas.
He reached the 102m mark but during his rise from Dean's Blue Hole was forced to grab the safety line, asking for assistance from two other divers.