FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

US Freediving Team Announces Selection Criteria for 2010 AIDA Team Freediving World Championships

The United States Apnea Association (USAA) announces the selection criteria for the
United States Freediving Team for membership on the US Freediving Team for the 2010 AIDA Team Freediving World Championships.  The team consists of four male and four female athletes per discipline.  Selection will be based on performances in any AIDA ranking list competition including US National Championships in April in Kona, Hawaii.  The team will be representing the United States at the International Association for the Development of Apnea, AIDA Team Freediving World Championships at the end of June in Okinawa, Japan.

US Team selection will be based on performances in three freediving disciplines (Constant Weight, Static, and Dynamic Apnea with Fins) realized by athletes in any AIDA Ranking List competition after January 1, 2008 until April 30, 2010.  Any athlete interested in applying for a position on the US Freediving Team must submit their application to

The application must present the following items.

Athlete’s Name
Address
Contact information including E-mail and phone number
Performances realized in AIDA Ranking List Competition and points achieved.
Date(s) of performances
Statement of US Citizenship (You hold a US Passport and have represented yourself as a US athlete).

Priority of selection will go to performances realized at the same competition with the highest point total for the three disciplines.  Athletes without performances in all three disciplines or at the same competition are still welcomed to apply.  Also, athletes without performances in this time period will be considered as well.

USAA encourages any and all athletes interested in participating on the US Freediving Team to submit performances for selection to the team.  Final selection of the team will commence after the submission deadline of May 1, 2010.  The top four male and female athletes with the highest point totals will be selected to the US Freediving Team.

Anyone being considered for the US Freediving Team must be a USAA member.  All athletes will be required to have signed medical releases for freediving, personal diving accident insurance policies, signed USAA liability waivers, provide their own expenses for participation in World Championships, and participate in all team functions.  Any selected athlete not accepting team membership will lose their selection and the next highest-ranking athlete will be asked to join the team. 

The AIDA Team Freediving World Championships is a biannual event that brings the world’s best freediving national teams together to compete in three events: Constant Weight with Fins, Static Apnea, and Dynamic Apnea with Fins.  The top male and female national teams will be known as the World Champion.

AIDA recognizes eight categories of freediving (for information of all of the categories take a look at the website).  Static Apnea challenges the athlete to hold their breath for time.  The athlete lays face down on the surface of the pool and holds their breath for the longest time possible.  Dynamic Apnea challenges the freediver to swim as far as they can with the aid of fins on a single breath of air. Constant Weight with Fins challenges the athlete to dive as deep as they can and return to the surface while holding their breath with the use of fins or a monofin.   The team with the highest point total for all three athletes in the three disciplines is crowned the winner.  The competition is divided in the male and female divisions. 

For more information about USAA and the US Freediving Team please visit the website.    www.usfreediving.com.  Updates will be coming soon.

The USAA is a non-profit association founded on a democratic representation of freediving within the United States and internationally.  Founded in 2003, the USAA brought together a diverse group of 21 founding members, all interested in the development and growth of freediving.  In just six months, this highly dedicated group was able to create an association recognized as the voice of freediving in the United States by the international community.  The association has grown to over one hundred members with continued growth expected.  USAA will have a full team at the World Championships in Japan.  For more information about the World Championships please checkout www.aidainternational.org.

The International Association for the Development of Apnea (AIDA) is the international sanctioning body for freediving, individual and team competition, and freediving world record attempts.  AIDA nationals are individual associations that represent freediving and AIDA in their country, similar to Olympic Organizing Committees.  For more information about AIDA check out http://www.aidainternational.org.

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Images available upon request. 

Contact Information:

Grant W. Graves, President
United States Apnea Association, USAA

3642 Seahorn Dr.
Malibu, CA 90265
Email: makog@aol.com
Phone: 310-560-6104

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