FREEDIVING

FreeSlovenia

Text KRZYSZTOF JARZYNA

Samo Jeranko

Slovenes fell in love with freediving like Poles did in winter swimming. If they opted for that second activity, they would not be bare-chested in the beautiful Julian Alps in winter, they would only do it wisely and join other sports they practice.

This is the nation for which sport is a lifestyle. Freediving is also for a growing group of people. Not only in Slovenia, but we will focus on going under water in a country known as Europe in a nutshell. Why is it said about this small country with the population of Warsaw? For several reasons. There are mountains, lowlands, the sea, beautiful lakes, thermal springs, waterfalls and vineyards on site. Plus three climate zones. Alpine, or if you prefer – mountain, Mediterranean and moderate. Before we deal with how freedivers found themselves here, we will pay attention to the sports phenomenon of Slovenia. They have great cyclists – Tadej Pogacar won the Tour de France last year, followed by his compatriot Primoż Roglić. Young Luka Donici is one of the biggest stars of the NBA basketball league and Jan Oblak is the goalkeeper of the current leader of La Liga Atletico Madrid. Moreover, they have great handball players and can even beat our volleyball players. And we are a real power in this sport and the current world champions. How is it possible for a nation of two million to generate such sports achievements? – The matter is complex and simple at the same time – Paweł Kranc begins. He is the founder of visitslovenia.pl portal and probably the best informed citizen of our country in Slovenian matters. – First of all, the spending of free time outside is in their blood. It is a generational tradition here that at the weekend – especially in mountain towns, whole villages go for long walks. In addition, the terrain helps them – they have beautiful mountains. Hence the passion for winter sports. I will never forget the first time I spent New Years Eve and New Years Day in Bled. When I woke up and looked out my hotel window, I saw a crowd of people outside. At different ages. Some were running, others were going with cross-country skis to Pokljuka – still others were getting ready to go alpine skiing. It was 9 am on New Years Day. Each of us knows what the activity of Poles looks like then – he concluded.

Of course, there are more reasons for the Slovenian sporting phenomenon. We must remember that not only in Slovenia, but also in the entire former Yugoslavia, sport was a window to the world, a chance to leave the country and a better life. Let us add that Slovenian cities are not large – it is easy to make decisions in such centers and it is easier to organize the lives of young people for sports. And the matter of sports educators – they are so well rewarded that they do not have

Photo Emilia Biała Photo Paweł Kranc, visitslowenia.pl

Samo Jeranko

to grab a few magpies by the tail. Here a PE teacher at school, half at a club and a few contracts for a job besides children's sports. It's not in Slovenia. Now, the most important thing, we are going under the water. Samo Jeranko is an excellent and titled freediver on the international arena and you could meet him quite recently at Deepspot. – Freediving is extremely popular in Slovenia. Ten or fifteen years ago it was all about spearfishing. But today people enjoy pure freediving in pools, lakes and the Adriatic Sea. All of us who are involved in the sport in some way work very hard to promote it as the perfect combination of sport, excitement and relaxation. Not to mention that we also have very strong athletes who win medals and break world records like Alenka

Artnik, Andrej Roprte and me – he concluded modestly.

We also asked him where in Slovenia the freediving adventure usually begins. – We have a culture of spending summer holidays on the Adriatic, where you always have a mask and a pipe with you. Besides, we go freediving in Bled Lake – one of the most beautiful places in the world. From a sports perspective, I hope it will one day become more popular than swimming. We are working on it, he said.

It is also worth mentioning the topic of the international successes of Slovenian freedivers. Samo sees it as follows. – The whole nation is very active. We have athletes who are successful in many disciplines. And it is similar with free diving. Alenka Artnik broke 2 world records in 2020. Whenever there is

a world championship in freediving in the area, it is very loud about it. And this helps a lot in the popularity and promotion of the discipline, he concluded. Finally, a few words of freediving in Poland. We dream of an explosion of popularity similar to Slovenia, and it is possible, especially when people like Emilia Biała infect with that sport. Unusual energy, wisdom and distance to life and the world. – Freediving for me is a clean, simple and very personal form of contact with water, nature, but also with myself. It is a tool of self-discovery for me. It is a journey between two breaths – the one just before descending and the one after reaching the surface. A journey in which time ceases to flow, where the voices from outside become irrelevant, and where there is only a moment "here and now" and we are immersed in it: there is no place here for contemplating the events of the past and worries about the unknown future. It is for these few moments when everything comes together, and of which we are a part, long preparations, long expeditions and trainings take place. It can be a bit addictive… – she assessed. After Emilia's words, don't you feel like diving without a cylinder and a mask? Does anyone have any doubts that the Slovenes are a unique nation and that it is necessary to visit their country and make an appointment with Samo, for example, to go underwater in the crystal clear Bled Lake? We do not want to believe...