Martinborough freediver Kathryn Nevatt was in sensational form at the world indoor championships which finished in Lignano Sabbiadoro in Italy last Sunday, winning one gold and one silver medal and placing fourth in her other event.
The sole female in the four-strong Kiwi contingent, Nevatt covered herself in glory bysecuring the gold medal in the static apnea competition which requires participants to hold their breath under water for as long as possible. Her winning time was a hugely impressive seven minutes 12 seconds.
Nevatt's silver medal came in the discipline of dynamic with no fins, an event which involves swimming horizontally under water on a single breath hold. Her dive there measured 148 metres while in the dynamic with fins competition she was fourth with a distance of 186m.
Having qualified for all three of her events on her 2010 world rankings, Nevatt commenced her preparation for Italy back in February and was aiming high after coming away from the 2009 worlds with one silver and two bronze medals.
In a sport which is essentially diving without the assistance of breathing apparatus and which is heavily regulated because of its potential dangers, Nevatt has made a huge impact since taking it up seriously in 2004.
Even before her latest excursion her curriculum vitae included a multitude of New Zealand and Oceania titles and two world records while in 2008 she was voted the world's best female freediver at the International Centre for Apnea Recognition and Education (ICARE) awards.
Nevatt, who lives in Martinborough and works fulltime as an architect in Palmerston North, says freediving is a sport which is open to all ages and backgrounds and one which fully tested the willpower of the participant. It was, she said, "demanding and relaxing, frightening and peaceful".
