Dave Edlund
01-12-2010, 11:09 PM
I am excited to post that the U.S. is sending a strong young team to this years Spearfishing World Championships in Croatia to be held in mid-September. We will have one of our youngest teams ever with every diver being 25 years or younger. This years team is composed of Justin Allen, Dan Silveira, Sean Moreshi, and John Modica (alternate) and is coached by Brian Lee.
This will be the third time in the history of spearfishing world championships which date back to 1954 that the tournament will be held in Croatia (formerly Yugoslavia). The first time it was 1957 and we sent a team composed of all Long Beach Neptunes. They were Bob Weaver, Jim Christensen, and Lee Jamison. They could only afford to train on site in Croatia for 1 week, but they dove well and each finished in the top 15 divers. Most of the spearfishing was done at 30 foot depths.
Forty years later the Worlds came back to Croatia and we had a southern California team again. I can not remember all four divers, but three of them were Bill Ernst, Gerald Lim and Rene Rojas. In 40 years, the fish that could be found at 30 feet were long gone and most of the diving was done at the 100 foot plus range. American Gerald Lim took 6th place overall and speared the largest fish of the tournament. I believe the American team was on site in Croatia for 3 weeks. Correct me if I am wrong on this Bill.
Now, another 10 years has passed and the diving will be deeper yet I suspect. I will let the team make comments, but I know they have been doing freedive training the past few months in the 100-140 foot range in Florida.
Our young team is training hard, but one of their biggest issues is going to be fundraising. The more funds they can raise, the longer they can train in Croatia and I believe the higher their scores will be. You will hear more about their fundraising plans, but any support you give will be greatly appreciated.
Here is their website:
http://www.usaspearfishing.com/
Here is some background information on World Spearfishing Championships:
C.M.A.S. (Confederation Mondiale des Activities Subaquatiques) sponsors a World Spearfishing Championship every two years and usually limits participation to the top 20 of its member countries. CMAS is a worldwide organization for underwater sports and currently and has approximately 35 countries as members. Each World Spearfishing Championship is typically held at a different dive location around the World. Here is a liting of the previous Championship sites and the winners:
http://www.underwaterhunters.com/Hist_World%20Champions.asp
What happens at a World Spearfishing Championship?
The Worlds are a 2-day championship where divers shoot fish for about 7 hours per day. Each day, the diving is done at a different location. Typically, 20-25 teams qualify to compete at the World Championships. And because too many teams want to participate at the Worlds, sometimes there are regional qualifiers for the World Championships per Continent. In 2006, the U.S. team dove in Peru to qualify for the Portugal Worlds via the Americas qualifier. The World Championships are boat-based meets and each team is allowed to have three divers hunting. The Championships are run somewhat like a mini-Olympics where there are opening ceremonies and a big closing banquet. It is not uncommon for thousands of people to attend the opening ceremony where each team has there own national uniform. Imagine, thousands of people applauding for spearfishermen? What a concept. At the opening event there is a parade of Nations where each country carries their nations’ flag.
What does it take to do well?
These Championships are not about just having great freediving talent as all the divers have a high degree of talent. It is about preparation and having enough resources (time and money). The top teams in these Championships will spend months training at the site, finding fishy locations (scouting) and understanding everything about the tournament area. Let’s say, the Italian team, always one of the top teams brings 10 divers to the World site and spends 60 days diving there in preparation. That’s 600 full diver days in the water. You can have all the 100 foot freedive capable divers you want, but without scouting time to hunt miles and miles of coastline, you will not break the top 5 teams. America has never hosted a Worlds, but our top divers have won individual honors (Terry Lentz) and finished 2nd a couple of times (John Ernst). In my personal opinion, our U.S divers can hang with the very best. Our biggest challenges are the time and money aspect. We seem to "work" more than the rest of the World!
How you can get involved with the U.S World team?
There are many ways. You could qualify for one of the top spots by participating in U.S. National Championships. You could also come to the Worlds as a "scout" for the team. That’s the way I attended in 2004 in Chile. It’s a great way to help the team and prepare yourself for future Worlds. A scout typically spends 2-3 weeks prior to the Worlds and dives everyday with the team finding fishy locations. Then on tournament day you support a specific U.S. team member helping them with gear and advice.
Would you like to represent the United States at the 2012 World Championships?
Well, then you must come and dive this years U.S. National Spearfishing Championships in Geers Ferry Lake in Heber Springs, Arkansas this coming August 5th.
In closing, this will be a trip of a lifetime for these young divers and I know each of them is going to give it 100%. Please support them with their shirt sales and fundraisers and help them make the most of this great opportunity!! They may be young, but that is no limitation because a long time ago before most of you were born, a young American named "Terry Lentz" won the Worlds in age 22 in Malta, 1959. Don't bet against young Americans, particulary of the spearfishing kind! :)
This will be the third time in the history of spearfishing world championships which date back to 1954 that the tournament will be held in Croatia (formerly Yugoslavia). The first time it was 1957 and we sent a team composed of all Long Beach Neptunes. They were Bob Weaver, Jim Christensen, and Lee Jamison. They could only afford to train on site in Croatia for 1 week, but they dove well and each finished in the top 15 divers. Most of the spearfishing was done at 30 foot depths.
Forty years later the Worlds came back to Croatia and we had a southern California team again. I can not remember all four divers, but three of them were Bill Ernst, Gerald Lim and Rene Rojas. In 40 years, the fish that could be found at 30 feet were long gone and most of the diving was done at the 100 foot plus range. American Gerald Lim took 6th place overall and speared the largest fish of the tournament. I believe the American team was on site in Croatia for 3 weeks. Correct me if I am wrong on this Bill.
Now, another 10 years has passed and the diving will be deeper yet I suspect. I will let the team make comments, but I know they have been doing freedive training the past few months in the 100-140 foot range in Florida.
Our young team is training hard, but one of their biggest issues is going to be fundraising. The more funds they can raise, the longer they can train in Croatia and I believe the higher their scores will be. You will hear more about their fundraising plans, but any support you give will be greatly appreciated.
Here is their website:
http://www.usaspearfishing.com/
Here is some background information on World Spearfishing Championships:
C.M.A.S. (Confederation Mondiale des Activities Subaquatiques) sponsors a World Spearfishing Championship every two years and usually limits participation to the top 20 of its member countries. CMAS is a worldwide organization for underwater sports and currently and has approximately 35 countries as members. Each World Spearfishing Championship is typically held at a different dive location around the World. Here is a liting of the previous Championship sites and the winners:
http://www.underwaterhunters.com/Hist_World%20Champions.asp
What happens at a World Spearfishing Championship?
The Worlds are a 2-day championship where divers shoot fish for about 7 hours per day. Each day, the diving is done at a different location. Typically, 20-25 teams qualify to compete at the World Championships. And because too many teams want to participate at the Worlds, sometimes there are regional qualifiers for the World Championships per Continent. In 2006, the U.S. team dove in Peru to qualify for the Portugal Worlds via the Americas qualifier. The World Championships are boat-based meets and each team is allowed to have three divers hunting. The Championships are run somewhat like a mini-Olympics where there are opening ceremonies and a big closing banquet. It is not uncommon for thousands of people to attend the opening ceremony where each team has there own national uniform. Imagine, thousands of people applauding for spearfishermen? What a concept. At the opening event there is a parade of Nations where each country carries their nations’ flag.
What does it take to do well?
These Championships are not about just having great freediving talent as all the divers have a high degree of talent. It is about preparation and having enough resources (time and money). The top teams in these Championships will spend months training at the site, finding fishy locations (scouting) and understanding everything about the tournament area. Let’s say, the Italian team, always one of the top teams brings 10 divers to the World site and spends 60 days diving there in preparation. That’s 600 full diver days in the water. You can have all the 100 foot freedive capable divers you want, but without scouting time to hunt miles and miles of coastline, you will not break the top 5 teams. America has never hosted a Worlds, but our top divers have won individual honors (Terry Lentz) and finished 2nd a couple of times (John Ernst). In my personal opinion, our U.S divers can hang with the very best. Our biggest challenges are the time and money aspect. We seem to "work" more than the rest of the World!
How you can get involved with the U.S World team?
There are many ways. You could qualify for one of the top spots by participating in U.S. National Championships. You could also come to the Worlds as a "scout" for the team. That’s the way I attended in 2004 in Chile. It’s a great way to help the team and prepare yourself for future Worlds. A scout typically spends 2-3 weeks prior to the Worlds and dives everyday with the team finding fishy locations. Then on tournament day you support a specific U.S. team member helping them with gear and advice.
Would you like to represent the United States at the 2012 World Championships?
Well, then you must come and dive this years U.S. National Spearfishing Championships in Geers Ferry Lake in Heber Springs, Arkansas this coming August 5th.
In closing, this will be a trip of a lifetime for these young divers and I know each of them is going to give it 100%. Please support them with their shirt sales and fundraisers and help them make the most of this great opportunity!! They may be young, but that is no limitation because a long time ago before most of you were born, a young American named "Terry Lentz" won the Worlds in age 22 in Malta, 1959. Don't bet against young Americans, particulary of the spearfishing kind! :)