The ocean gods smiled down upon the third competition days for both the women and men of the AIDA Asian Freediving Cup 2026.
Women’s Day 3
Sunny skies, a relatively flat sea, and some of the best conditions of the competition made for a memorable session, with five national records and plenty of moments worth celebrating.
Records at Depth
Finland’s Leena Oijala opened the highlights with a 95m CWT national record that looked effortless yet explosive from start to finish. China’s Xu Tongtong, the defending overall champion of AFC 2025, followed with a strong and commanding 90m FIM national record, making it clear she came here to defend her title. Shortly after, Nelli Tcareva, who had faced a difficult run of results earlier in the competition, broke through with a beautifully clean 90m FIM white card. It was a deeply satisfying moment for an athlete who had clearly not given up.
Hard-Earned Moments
China’s Ling Yi, known as Emily, had one of the most hard-earned white cards of the day: an 85m CWT dive she had been chasing for over 10 attempts, collecting yellow cards throughout official training and competition before finally nailing it when it counted. Meanwhile, Ireland’s Megan Lyons delivered a powerful 80m CWT dive for a new Irish national record.
Celebrating CNF
Korea’s Cho Jisook claimed the Korean CNF national record with a clean 58m dive, but doesn’t seem quite done yet. And China’s Li Runya, known as Yaya, followed up her unsuccessful first attempt at CNF on Day 1 with a clean 32m CNF white card—but only after a long search for the bottom tag inside of her wetsuit.
Men’s Day 3
The men’s day was littered with three national records and plenty of emotion-filled dives woven in between.
National Records
Slovakia’s Martin Ruman delivered his strongest performance of the competition so far: a flawless 114m FIM national record. Belgium’s Quest Henkart, after a challenging start to his AFC 2026, came roaring back with a powerful and spicy 92m FIM white card and a new Belgian national record. And Australia’s Mitch Ayres closed out the final national-record dive with a flawless 82m in CNF.
Other Highlights
France’s Alexandre Poirier surfaced from an 88m FIM white card to warm and well-deserved congratulations from the platform. Hong Kong’s Michael Wai Yin Sung dove to 60m in CWTB wearing cat ears, cat paws, and a dress, because if you’re going to dive 60m, you might as well look fabulous doing it. China’s Ziyu Rocky Liu, cheered on in the YouTube comments by his daughter, reached a new personal best of 58m in CNF, leaving commentators and livestream viewers with teary eyes.
Honorable Mention
Korea’s Lee Daesung, known as Nanna, had a beautiful and clean 95m FIM dive that was received with cheers throughout the platform. Due to a late check-in, his result could not count toward the official standings, but the dive itself was a reminder of how he’s conquered the surface protocol since the competition setups and official training. One competition day remains for the men, and Nanna will have one more chance to make it official.
Stay tuned, the fourth days for men and women are already promising to be ones filled with national, continental, and world record attempts.
Sponsors of AIDA Asian Freediving Cup 2026:
- CETMA Composites
- BESTDIVE
- Molchanovs
- Garmin
- Dive & Sail
- Freediving Planet
- Sideways
- 南康家具
- World Apnea – AIDA International
Organizers of AIDA Asian Freediving Cup 2026
- Just One Breath Freediving
- Freedive SuperHOME
AIDA Asian Freediving Cup 