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The Editor says: For ocean lovers passionate about freediving, the AIDA Pacific Rim Cup should need no introduction — it is one of the largest and most prestigious freediving competitions in Taiwan. Every athlete continuously pushes their personal limits and breaks their own records, making it an incredibly tense and thrilling event to watch in person! Read on as the Editor walks you through this year's results!
Taiwan's largest and most iconic freediving pool competition, the 2023 AIDA Pacific Rim Cup, concluded today (11/12) at the Taichung City North District Sports Center. Co-organized by 女子的海 and the Taiwan Freediving Development Association, this event is the most large-scale competition of its kind in Taiwan and one of the most significant in all of Asia. The organizers hope that by hosting an internationally recognized competition in Taiwan, they can foster exchange between domestic and international athletes, and through competition, elevate the overall culture and standard of freediving in the country. Now in its fifth year, the event attracted 220 participants, once again breaking national records for freediving competition attendance — and ranking as the largest freediving competition in the world — underscoring that freediving has grown into a meaningful sport and water activity with a substantial following.
Four New Records Were Set at This Year's AIDA Pacific Rim Cup, Including a New Asian Record by Chan Kai-Hsiang
The highlight of the competition centered on the Dynamic without Fins (DNF) discipline, where male athlete Chan Kai-Hsiang and female athlete Hsieh Hsin-Ying each broke national records and claimed first place in their respective categories. Chan Kai-Hsiang's distance of 190 m not only surpassed the national record of 182 m set by Huang Hua-Yang in 2022, but also broke the Asian record previously held by a Chinese athlete, making Chan the next holder of an Asian record in a pool competition discipline after Hsu Yueh-Hsiang. Meanwhile, Hsieh Hsin-Ying improved upon her own performance, narrowly breaking her personal national record of 136 m with a new mark of 137 m.
Athlete Chan Kai-Hsiang receives a white card upon surfacing, setting new Asian and Taiwan national records. photo credit：女子的海
Among international athletes, Malaysian male competitor Lim Soon Fatt broke the Malaysian national record in DNF with a distance of 115 m. In the Dynamic with Bi-fins (DYNB) discipline, Hong Kong male athlete Wong Chun-Wai broke the Hong Kong record with 207 m, though the top honors went to Taiwan's Li Bo-Yan and Ma Yi-Chen, who claimed gold with distances of 215 m and 184 m respectively. In the Dynamic with Fins (DYN) discipline, Taiwan's veteran Huang Hua-Yang and South Korean athlete Suwon Kim took first place in their respective categories, while in static apnea (STA), Chan Kai-Hsiang again claimed the men's gold, and Liu Yu-Han, who won the women's category, narrowly missed the national record by just 6 seconds.
Tallying the overall competition scores, Chan Kai-Hsiang dominated the men's category without contest, scoring 297.3 points, while Ma Yi-Chen claimed the women's crown with 236.9 points. The 2023 annual championship titles went to Yang Ren-Hong and Lin Hsin-Ju, two seasoned competitors who have consistently excelled throughout the competition season.
Athlete Chan Kai-Hsiang receives a white card upon surfacing, setting new Asian and Taiwan national records. photo credit：女子的海
photo credit：女子的海
AIDA (freediving agency) Safety Commission Convenor Praises Taiwan: World-Class Standards and Quality
Over the three days of competition, 220 athletes completed more than 520 dives in total. To uphold fairness and rigor, staff operated at full capacity throughout. The seamless flow of events and the professional safety planning left Chief Judge and AIDA (freediving agency) Safety Commission Convenor Mr. Savvas Savva — invited by the association to officiate the competition — full of admiration. He was astonished that Taiwan could so smoothly and efficiently execute a competition of such complexity, stating: "Taiwan is absolutely capable of hosting the AIDA World Freediving Championship — in fact, I'd say a world championship might actually be easier to run." He added: "Taiwan absolutely has the ability to successfully organize a world-class competition." However, in the pursuit of greater professionalism and fairness, the organizing team enforced venue management regulations more strictly, which unfortunately led to some athletes being disqualified for failing to comply with certain competition rules.
Overall, this event once again set a high benchmark for the quality of freediving competitions held in Taiwan. Taiwan Freediving Development Association Secretary-General Wu Ping-You stated: "In a competitive environment where both the quality and quantity of athletes are growing rapidly, we must be bold in our attempts, continually challenge ourselves, and push through difficulties. We hope to live up to expectations and continue to provide a stage where athletes can freely give their best."
Results
| Discipline | Place | Men's Category | Women's Category |
|---|---|---|---|
| Static Apnea (STA) | 1 | Chan Kai-Hsiang (7:01) | Liu Yu-Han (6:21) |
| 2 | Hsiao Chih-Jung (6:48) | Lin Hsin-Ju (6:07) | |
| 3 | Wang Ching-Yu (6:41) | Ma Yi-Chen (6:02) | |
| Dynamic without Fins (DNF) | 1 | Chan Kai-Hsiang (190m) | Hsieh Hsin-Ying (137m) |
| 2 | Li Bo-Yan (171m) | Liu Yu-Han (132m) | |
| 3 | Pai Po-Han (161m) | Chen Yi-Jun (125m) | |
| Dynamic with Fins (DYN) | 1 | Huang Hua-Yang (249m) | Suwon Kim (178m) |
| 2 | Chang Yi-Hsien (230m) | 兼本光恵 (174m) | |
| 3 | Pai Po-Han (200m) | Liu Yu-Han (167m) | |
| Dynamic with Bi-fins (DYNB) | 1 | Li Bo-Yan (215m) | Ma Yi-Chen (184m) |
| 2 | Chan Kai-Hsiang (209m) | Chen Yu-Jung (175m) | |
| 3 | Wong Chun-Wai (207m) | 董家㚬 (157m) | |
| Rookie Category (Newcomer Overall Score) | 1 | Huang Chiao-Chien (DYNB 150) | Yang Yu-Jun (DYNB 128) |
| 2 | Chen Kuan-Ting (DYNB 128) | Wang Hsin-Chieh (DYNB 117) | |
| 3 | Cheng Chih-Yueh (DYNB 103) | Huang Hsin-Hui (DYNB 116) | |
| Open Category (Newcomer Award) | 1 | Wong Chun-Wai (252.2) | 兼本光恵 (196.4) kanemoto mitsue |
| Team Category | 1 | TNT | 802.005 |
| 2 | 聖母馬戲團 | 777.473 | |
| 3 | Lalaland | 741.505 | |
| 2023 Annual Championship | 1 | Yang Ren-Hong (746.3) | Lin Hsin-Ju (815.1) |
| Overall Competition Champion | 1 | Chan Kai-Hsiang (297.3) | Ma Yi-Chen (236.9) |
| National / Asian Record Breaks | Chan Kai-Hsiang (Taiwan) Asian & National Record: DNF 190m | Hsieh Hsin-Ying (Taiwan) National Record: DNF 137m | |
| Lim Soon Fatt (Malaysia) National Record: DNF 115m | |||
| Wong Chun-Wai (Hong Kong) National Record: DYNB 207m |
Event Photo Gallery
photo credit：女子的海
photo credit：女子的海
Ocean Affairs Council Senior Technical Specialist Hong Kuo-Yao (center) presents the 2023 Annual Championship awards to athletes Yang Ren-Hong and Lin Hsin-Ju. photo credit：女子的海
Taichung City Government Sports Bureau Section Chief Liao Yi-Hong presents the record-breaking award to Chan Kai-Hsiang, who set a new Asian record. photo credit：女子的海
Chinese Taipei Underwater Activities Association Chairman Liu Wen-Hong presents the team award to Taichung's "Team Nantun." photo credit：女子的海
Taichung City Government Sports Bureau Section Chief Liao Yi-Hong presents BO consolation prizes to athletes who were unsuccessful in their attempts during the competition. photo credit：女子的海
photo credit：女子的海
Organizers:
Further Reading:
