I had been sitting for a few minutes inside Black Scoop Café on Maginhawa Street when a towering morena lady walked through the door. I instantly recognized her as Marese Secades—a freediver whose spectacular underwater photographs had initially arrested my attention.
Freediving Record Holder Marese Secades
A few days earlier, I had reached out to her, and during our exchange of messages, she casually mentioned being the Filipina freediver who had dived the deepest to date. Astounded by that piece of information, I asked her if I could interview her in person for an article about freediving—to which she happily obliged.
The moment she sat across the table, she quickly started recounting her freediving journey. “A friend of mine invited me to join an intro class. I said yes and joined them on a beach trip where I was informally taught how to freedive,” Secades recalled.
After telling her about my fears of the open water, Marese assured me there was nothing to fear and described each freediving session as a soulful experience: “The overwhelming feeling of calm and peace is so indescribable.”
“Freediving is diving on a breath hold with no breathing apparatus. Some of the original freedivers are from the Philippines. They are the Badjao, otherwise known as the ‘Sea Gypsies’ of the Celebes Sea,” Secades explained.
Setting a Freediving Record
After her informal introduction to the sport of freediving, Secades took it a notch higher—in terms of preparation and dedication—by undergoing professional training. It didn’t take long before her journey led her to Panglao, Bohol, on May 18 and 19, where she set a women’s national record of fifty-nine meters (one hundred ninety-three feet) during the Philippine Depth National Championship.
“I had to be completely focused during each second of my dive. It was vital to keep my equalization and relaxation always in check. If I let my mind wander, it could easily distract me a million ways,” Secades said as she recalled her state of mind during her record-setting dive.
It was also on the island of Panglao where she found the best place to train for the competition. “I had to move from Manila to Panglao two months ahead of time to prepare myself in all possible ways. I signed up for regular training sessions at Freedive Panglao, which is considered one of the best in the world, under the coaching of freediving world champion Alenka Artnik,” she said.
The Freediving Scene in the Philippines
The Philippines had long been renowned as a scuba diving haven where many of the world’s best diving spots could be found. There was Tubbataha Reef, the Verde Island Passage, Panglao in Bohol, Puerto Galera in Oriental Mindoro, and Anilao in Batangas, to name just a few. Because of the abundance of underwater gems surrounding the archipelago, it did not come as a surprise to learn that the sport of freediving thrived and created a rapidly growing community.
“Philippine freediving is booming! At the moment, there are over ten thousand Filipino freedivers, which is a big jump from less than a hundred three years ago. There are also around thirty certified Filipino freediving instructors around the country. It’s getting bigger and bigger, and many are now getting into competitive freediving,” Secades said.
After my short conversation with Marese Secades, the allegory in her passion occurred to me. While she held her breath each time she went underwater—for a minute or two—diving into depths of dozens of meters before ascending to the surface, in real life nowadays, she spent every breathing moment embracing the sport.
Freediving to her was no longer just a recreational activity. Apart from being an instructor at Apnea Philippines, Marese also devoted more time to training for the sport and incorporating all the understanding she learned from it into her lifestyle.
“Training for freediving does not start when you are in the water; it starts the night before. You have to make sure you eat a proper diet, get enough rest, and exercise. Meditation is also a huge factor in training, as it quiets and trains your mind. One needs to live, eat, and breathe freediving. It is not a hobby; it’s a lifestyle,” Secades told me.
The way she described her dedication to the sport of freediving sounded to me like a very complex and disciplined daily routine. However, when I started looking at her underwater photographs again, I understood fully why she was into it so much. As each photograph blew my mind away, I inched closer to one day trying freediving—all thanks to Marese for inspiring me.
Photos by Marese Secades, Jake Alejandre & Martin Zapanta
Freediving Hubs in the Philippines
This article first appeared on BusinessMirror
