Free diver world champion, William Trubridge is already eyeing a new record after successfully completing his deepest yet at 102 metres yesterday .
When it screened in New Zealand at 7.40am, Kiwis clung to the edges of their seats as he plunged beneath the ocean into Dean's Blue Hole in the Bahamas, the world's deepest known salt water blue hole.
He sank to 102m, comparable to about one third the height of Auckland's Sky Tower, gathered a marker at the bottom and resurfaced without assistance.
I could feel the support of so many behind me, but knew I had to stay in the present, I was nearly there.
The former Bay man broke his existing 101m record and is setting the stakes even higher for his next attempt.
In a tense few moments on the surface, Mr Trubridge completed post-dive protocol, signalling to the judge he was okay. The judge waved the white card and the celebrations erupted, both in the water and back home in New Zealand.
William is now the proud holder of an incredible 18 free diving world records, and continues to push the boundaries of what is possible for the human body. Steinlager Pure partnered with TVNZ to broadcast the dive nationwide and Trubridge said knowing the folks at home were watching made him more determined to set the new record.
Being touted as the sequel to a previous attempt at the same record in 2014, he told New Zealand "I owe you a world record". This morning, he made good on his promise.
"It was huge sense of relief. To get this record in the bag is a dream," the diver said.
"I started to feel a little bit of a fade halfway up, I wondered if it was going to go pear-shaped again. I could feel the support of so many behind me, but knew I had to stay in the present, I was nearly there."
William's parents, Linda and David Trubridge of Havelock North nervously watched their son's dive live from the TVNZ Breakfast couch.
"We're just so proud of him, each time he dives. They're the longest four minutes of our lives, but we're just so happy he's finally notched this one up," his father said. Michael Taylor from Steinlager Pure said: "every time William dives, he shows us what the human body and spirit is capable of, and inspires us all to push beyond the limits of what seems possible."
William said the 102m dive was not only a passion but "unfinished business".
The diver had already conquered the 102m depth in recent practices ahead of his successful attempt.
He had been training for this dive more than a year.