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Freediving with Tanya Streeter 
Tanya Streeter was born and raised in the Cayman Islands and is currently the best woman champion freediver in the world. In 1998, just months after discovering her extraordinary talent for breath-hold diving, Tanya broke all women’s and men’s Freediving World Records. Dive Global talks to her about the Cayman Islands, her ambitious plans for future records, her passion for the environment and her efforts to promote good ocean ethics. She currently lives in Austin, Texas, with her husband Paul.
Charlotte: Why do you freedive? Is it for the challenge or something else?
Tanya: The reason I freedive at this level is entirely for personal reasons and it centers around the strength it gives me as an individual. It is nice to know I can do something I'm really, really good at and promote the sport to the rest of the world. I had to work very hard to get to this level but it paid off. I like to excel and freediving gives me the opportunity to be at the top of a sport I love. I'm also in the right place at the right time. Freediving is an extreme sport and people love extreme sports these days. I find that women seem to especially enjoy women who participate in extreme sports.
Charlotte: How did you get into freediving in the first place?
two.jpg) Tanya: Growing up in the Cayman Islands I was a real water baby. Being in the water is very comfortable for me and free diving came natural to me. As a child I was already always snorkeling and diving down to the bottom. Then I found out a few years ago that I was really good at it!
Charlotte: I understand you are the best woman freediver in the world and likely to beat the men as well?
Tanya: Being the "best" woman freediver is not as important to me as being a good ambassador for the sport. I think I have a talent for promoting freediving. I like expanding the knowledge of the sport through the media. I'm very passionate about freediving and it makes me happy to realize that I have been able to change the opinion a lot of people have about freediving which is usually based on misunderstanding. I also work with environmental organizations such as the Whale and Dolphin Society in the UK which protects the whales and dolphins. I also help the Reefball Foundation. This organisation places artificial reefs into the oceans to help the original reefs grow back. I consider it a gift that these organization now come to me to ask me to help promote their causes. This is where "being the best" really pays off.
 I am very much a hands on person. I'd rather be in the middle of the sea between a whale and a whaling boat to protect these endangered animals but I realized its better to use my celebrity through the media to raise awareness. It is not that important to me to be the "best" freediver but much more to do what I can to protect the oceans. My freediving career will one day be over but I will be able to use my knowledge and "media power" to protect the oceans far past my freediving career. This is a life mission for me now.
I've been very fortunate to break men's records in the past. And I received a lot of media attention out of that which has put women's freediving closer to the forefront. The playing field between men and women is pretty level now. What is important to me is that my records have inspired other women. Records on a personal level do not mean so much. But on a bigger scale it tells the world that it is possible. It is empowering to believe that it is possible to go deeper. To push human endeavor to a higher level. To explore the unknown. I'm happy to lead the way in that respect.
Charlotte: Did you ever have a scary experience?
Tanya: Yeah of course. Freediving is always a little scary. National Geographic was filming a program called "Exforce". It turned out to be a high drama experience. They wanted me to go to 100m and the weather conditions were terrible that day. I had only 2 dives to do it in so there wasn't much time either. An accident with the sled led to a blackout and it's all on film! Blackouts are a part of competitive freediving. It is what can happen when you take your body to the limit. But if you are diving responsibly, with a buddy, it is very safe. The body is designed to protect itself and therefor you blackout at times. It is a natural reaction, and a good one because it protects us from damaging our body and helps us recover very quickly.
I have fears when I freedive. When you go deep it is dark and is natural for most of us to be afraid of the dark. When you take away our sight, there is fear as well. When you take away our ability to breathe, there is even more fear. Being afraid of dying when there is a risk of dying is very natural. I'm highly and adequately trained and have all the safety measures and procedures in place when I freedive. But we are still going to a place where nobody knows what is going to happen to our bodies in the long run. Staying longer and deeper every time is a big challenge for me. Freediving is considered an extreme sport because we are operating in extreme conditions. But I slap myself on the face when I get scared. I tell myself I can do it. You'll never hear me say we freedivers are superhuman or freaks. Boxing or race car driving is much more dangerous. But it is still an extreme sport and there is some risk involved. I deal more with mental fears then the fear to hurt myself physically in this sport. I live in a type of perpetual fear that I'm not going to succeed at the goals that I set for myself. It doesn't matter what the goal is. Having gone to these depths already I want to believe that I can do anything in my life. Where there is a will there is a way sort of thing. Not just freediving but in any aspect of my life. Like trying to keep my patience and increase my level of tolerance when things do not go the way I want them to go. I learnt all those things in freediving and I am still learning every day. I ask myself if I will be able to live up to my own high expectations.
Charlotte: What is the difference between freediving for women or men? We all remember the "Big Blue" movie...
Tanya: The male freedivers are much more competitive, and not only in the water. They attack each other in the media all the time. A little like in the Big Blue. There are some inaccuracies in that movie though. Luc Besson, the director, made it look like Jacques Mayol and the other divers went much deeper than they really did. The dives were much shallower than they were portrayed in the movie. We are now already going deeper. What is accurate in the movie though is the drama and the passion among the men. Male freedivers are very defensive. The rivalry among the men is huge. It is much less among the women. First of all there are not so many women. And women tend to do it more for themselves, for their own personal goals.
 Charlotte: Where is your favorite place in the Ocean and why?
Tanya: That would have to be the Caymans because I know that ocean better than any other place. But my other favorite place is not a destination but at about a depth of 50m (165ft). I love the feeling of being considerably deep but very comfortable at the same time. Being at 50m doesn't take all my concentration, it feels quiet, deep and beautiful. And there is a peace that comes over me and I'm thinking "wow, look at what I can do!" I quietly admire myself and what I do and the light is so beautiful at that depth as well. I still remember growing up on Grand Cayman and I would go to the beach in the morning and dive to about 6m or 20ft and I would lay on the bottom and look at the ripples of the beautiful white sand and enjoy the way the light fell on it. Like a photo in David Doubilet's "Water, Light and Motion" coffee table book. When I had to go to boarding school I went to that same place again one more time. The morning before I had to fly to the United Kingdom I told myself to remember the beauty of the place and never forget it. There is nothing else down there but it is one of the most beautiful places to be for me. That is where I have peace. I melt with the ocean and become part of it. It is a place where I really feel accepted and happy.
I went on a couple of film productions to dive with dolphins and whales. All phenomenal experiences. There is nothing like diving and encountering sea mammals in their natural habitat. When they choose to be there with you. This is what I prayed for as a child. We lived right on a bay and I would wish for a dolphin to come and play with me. When it actually happens as an adult and you realize the magnitude of the experience you realize how precious it is. Any life under water is amazing. I knew Stingray City before it was discovered by the masses and used to have the whole area to myself and my friends. When I had to go to boarding school in England I was so scared I would never go back to the Caymans ever again. My husband and I now live in Austin, Texas, and being landlocked really gets to me at times. Especially in the first few months it was hard when I didn't turn around the corner and see the ocean. But we have a lake and I do a lot of mountain biking now. It makes me appreciate my wonderful childhood and I am determined to have my children grow up close to the ocean as well.
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