News
Olympic flame carried underwater in world’s deepest lake
The Olympic flame has been carried underwater in Lake Baikal – the world’s deepest lake – as part of the Sochi 2014 Olympic Torch Relay.
The special event – which follows the Olympic torch’s expeditions to the North Pole and outer space – saw three Torchbearers in full diving gear pass the flame to each other at a depth of 13 metres.
Before the spectacular underwater relay, nine Torchbearers, who were greeted by traditional Cossack dancers and a theatrical troupe, had carried the Olympic flame through Taltsy, before reaching the town’s pier, where the flame was transferred to a special boat.
After travelling along the Angara River, the boat reached Lake Baikal, where the first Torchbearer – TV presenter and biologist Ivan Zatevakhin – passed the Olympic flame to diver Nicholay Rybachenko, an employee of the Baikal search-and-rescue team of the Russian Ministry of Emergency Situations.
Rybachenko then took the lit Torch below the surface of Lake Baikal, to a depth of 13 metres, before passing the Olympic flame to TV presenter Ekaterina Andreeva, who then transferred the flame to Aleksandr Vronsky, a senior vice president of the Sochi 2014 Organising Committee.
The Olympic flame was able to stay lit during the dive thanks to a special burner, which was designed and developed in a similar way to flares used for warning signals at sea.
As the last underwater torchbearer, Vronsky brought the flame to the surface of the lake and passed it to Mikhail Chuev, who spectacularly rocketed over the lake at a height of 10-metres using a special jetpack, which allowed him to bring the lit Torch directly to the shore.
There, he passed the flame to rhythmic gymnast Daria Dmitrieva – the all-around silver medallist at the London 2012 Olympic Games – before all the Torchbearers were greeted by local residents and the governor of the Irkutsk Region, Sergey Eroschenko, in the town of Listvyanka.
More information on the Sochi 2014 Olympic Torch Relay can be found at http://torchrelay.sochi2014.com/en/
Over the next 12 months, specialist scuba holiday company Dive Worldwide will be supporting Bite-Back Shark & Marine Conservation with donations collected from client bookings to any one of its stunning dive destinations around the world. The independently-owned operator expects to raise £3000 for the UK charity.
Manager at Dive Worldwide, Phil North, said: “We’re especially excited to work with Bite-Back and support its intelligent, creative and results-driven campaigns to end the UK trade in shark products and prompt a change in attitudes to the ocean’s most maligned inhabitant.”
Bite-Back is running campaigns to hold the media to account on the way it reports shark news along with a brand new nationwide education programme. Last year the charity was credited for spearheading a UK ban on the import and export of shark fins.
Campaign director at Bite-Back, Graham Buckingham, said: “We’re enormously grateful to Dive Worldwide for choosing to support Bite-Back. The company’s commitment to conservation helps set it apart from other tour operators and we’re certain its clients admire and respect that policy. For us, the affiliation is huge and helps us look to the future with confidence we can deliver against key conservation programmes.”
To launch the fundraising initiative, Phil North presented Graham Buckingham with a cheque for £1,000.
Visit Dive Worldwide to discover its diverse range of international scuba adventures and visit Bite-Back to learn more about the charity’s campaigns.
MORE INFORMATION
Call Graham Buckingham on 07810 454 266 or email graham@bite-back.com
Free Octopus with every purchase of a SCUBAPRO regulator system
Just in time for the spring season, divers can save money with the FREE OCTOPUS SPRING PROMOTION! Until July 31st SCUBAPRO offers an Octopus for free
with every purchase of a regulator system!
Get a free S270 OCTOPUS with purchase of these combinations:
MK25 EVO or MK19 EVO with A700
MK25 EVO or MK19 EVO with S620Ti
MK25 EVO or MK19 EVO with D420
MK25 EVO Din mit S620Ti-X
Get a free R105 OCTOPUS with purchase of the following combinations:
MK25 EVO or MK19 EVO with G260
MK25 EVO or MK17 EVO with S600
SCUBAPRO offers a 30-year first owner warranty on all regulators, with a revision period of two years or 100 dives. All SCUBAPRO regulators are of course certified according to the new European test standard EN250-2014.
Available at participating SCUBAPRO dealers. Promotion may not be available in all regions. Find an authorized SCUBAPRO Dealer at scubapro.com.
More information available on www.scubapro.com.
-
News3 months agoHone your underwater photography skills with Alphamarine Photography at Red Sea Diving Safari in March
-
News3 months agoCapturing Critters in Lembeh Underwater Photography Workshop 2024: Event Roundup
-
Marine Life & Conservation Blogs3 months agoCreature Feature: Swell Sharks
-
Blogs2 months agoMurex Resorts: Passport to Paradise!
-
Blogs2 months agoDiver Discovering Whale Skeletons Beneath Ice Judged World’s Best Underwater Photograph
-
Gear Reviews2 weeks agoGEAR REVIEW – Revolutionising Diving Comfort: The Sharkskin T2 Chillproof Suit
-
Gear Reviews3 months agoGear Review: Oceanic+ Dive Housing for iPhone
-
Marine Life & Conservation2 months agoSave the Manatee Club launches brand new webcams at Silver Springs State Park, Florida