Newcastle Free Diver Michaela Werner Breaks Underwater Swimming World Record in Pool

Nov 19, 2023

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Perhaps Newcastle woman Michaela Werner should have been a mermaid.

The 44-year-old free diver set a new world record on Friday, becoming the first woman to swim 101 underwater laps of a 25-metre pool in an hour.

Ms Werner was able to come up and take a breath after each lap, but was limited to just 10 seconds above the surface.

In total, she swam just over 2.5 kilometres underwater and held her breath for at least 42 minutes of the hour.

“It definitely stretched my limits,” she said.
See ABC