Nataliia Zharkova is a Ukrainian competitive freediver who this year (2025), returned to the competition scene after a four year break and won overall silver in the CMAS World Championships, diving deeper than 100m in three disciplines.

She first appeared on the podcast on episode #66

In this episode we discuss:

Nataliia’s first appearance on the podcast was episode #66.
Nataliia was in Dubai at the rime of recording.
Nataliia took a four year break from high-level freediving competitions.
Nataliia won overall silver during the recent CMAS World Championships in 2025.
Her opinions on the incident around Andrey Matveenko’s accident in training before this competition.
How long was the preparatory period for the World Championships?
A breakdown of the year long period of training.
How does she do her tabata workout?
How did taking time off from training benefit Nataliia?
Is OnlyFans getting in to feeediving?
How does she balance training and coaching?
What kind of strength training regimen does she have?
Why did Nataliia not do CNF this year in the World Championships?
Working on tweaking equalisation for the deeper dives and tweaking neutral buoyancy.
Experiences with narcosis
Attitude towards diet and nutrition.
The joys of quitting coffee.
We discuss the doping scandal in freediving in depth.
DESERT ISLAND QUESTIONS - Patreon Exclusive Section
What does representing Ukraine mean for her?
Why does she freedive?

For all episodes of The Freedive Cafe Podcast, information about freediving courses, coaching, workshops and retreats in Dahab, Egypt, visit www.truedepthfreediving.com

To support on Patreon: www.patreon.com/freedivecafe

Zsófia Törőcsik is a Hungarian freediving athlete who in 2025 became the first female freediving athlete to dive a distance of 300m in the pool and in the same year won gold at the AIDA Depth World Championships; her first ever depth competition.

In this episode we discuss:

Zsófia’s experience at the CMAS World Championship 2025 and the controversy surrounding the competition and the accident that happened to Andrey Matveenko.
Zsófia is from Hungary and credits her family with shaping her childhood in a positive way.
She did triathlon for 10 years, also competitively.
A first freediving experience in Malta.
Joining a pool club in Hungary and focusing on pool training.
Zsófia won the AIDA Depth World Championships in 2025.
How did a background in triathlon help Zsófia become a world champion in freediving?
Zsófia’s complementary training for freediving, including lots of strength training and biking.
The joys of living and training for freediving in Budapest.
What does a typical week of training look like?
A question from Patreon member Marc about the frequency of max and sub-max dives compared to shorter dives.
A question from Patreon member Rodrigo about her speed during her world record dive.
Zsófia was the first woman to dive 300m in the pool.
A question from Patreon member Elena about Zsófia’s mental strategies for performing such big dives.
She is completely deaf in her right ear due to a mumps infection.
Her natural talent for mouthfill equalisation.
A question from Patreon member Tom regarding the current level of freediving athleticism and the future potential of freedivers and freediving as a sport.
Zsófia is a 37 years old.
The importance of maturity in freediving and why there are less young people in our sport.
Her approach to nutrition and supplements.
Zsófia works in IT and puts together systems for companies.
DESERT ISLAND QUESTIONS - Patreon Exclusive Content
Why does she freedive?

For all episodes of The Freedive Cafe Podcast, information about freediving courses, coaching, workshops and retreats in Dahab, Egypt, visit www.truedepthfreediving.com

To support on Patreon: www.patreon.com/freedivecafe

Anna-Karina Schmitt is a German freediver based in Switzerland. Today we talk about the technicalities of diving in lakes and the challenges of living with multiple sclerosis and how freediving inspires her healthy lifestyle.

In this episode we discuss:

Anna and I had some real challenges getting the interview done. It took 4 attempts!
She was going into have surgery on her ankle the day before the interview.
Anna is from Germany, but now lives in Switzerland.
Her first forays into freediving in the lake in Switzerland and then with Samo Jeranko.
Anna had a world record in the lake in CNF at the time of recording.
Optimising life for freediving.
What are the advantages and disadvantages of diving in the lake?
Question from Patreon supporter Philip about lake safety conditions.
How they manage safety in the lake. Torches, depth sounders.
Questions from Patreon supporters about higher risk of squeezing in the lake.
The interview got stopped! We reconnected a week later after Anna-Karina got out from her ankle surgery.
What is multiple sclerosis and how does it affect Anna?
Multiple sclerosis is an autoimmune disease.
How freediving and the freediving lifestyle support Anna’s challenges with MS.
What does a typical week of freediving training look like for Anna?
Does she use cold water immersion for dealing with the cold in the lake.
A question from Patreon supporter Tony about dive response in the lake.
Reference to Episode #62 With Kiki Bosch.
Anna’s approach to nutrition and supplementation.
DESERT ISALND QUESTIONS - PATREON EXCLUSIVE
A dive she will always remember?
Why does she freedive?

For all episodes of the Freedive Cafe Podcast, visit www.freedivecafe.com

For freediving courses and training in Dahab, Egypt, visit www.freediveandthrive.com

To support on Patreon: www.patreon.com/freedivecafe

Jani Valdivia is from Peru and is based in Tampa, Florida where he works as a neurosurgeon.

He is also a member of the AIDA Science and Medical Committee and a competitive freediver himself.

Juani also appeared on episodes #99 and #135.

In this episode we discuss:

Catching up with Juani.
Juani was on Long Island, Bahamas at the time of the interview, preparing for Vertical Blue, 2025.
Remote assessment of an injured freediver.
An example scenario of a remote assessment, using lung squeeze.
The Slow Controlled Forced Exhale technique.
Assessment for DCI related or DCI-like symptoms.
MFSCO2 (Mask - motor memory, Fins - fine motor skills, Snorkel - Speech, C - coordination/balance, O - orientation, 2 - vision, eye sight and eyes)
Juani already did a real-world assessment on Donny.
What is Telemedicine?
A question from Patreon member Jorg about telemedicine.
Shout out to Johnny Sunnex.A question from Patreon member Andrew Ferris about what Juani wishes every new freediver knew about their body from the start.
On tracking variables such as resting heart rate and heart rate variability, blood pressure, body weight, etc.
A question from Patreon member Christian Stein, about how freediving interacts with the nervous system.
On over-training and sleep deprivation.
Study suggesting ROS (reactive oxygen species) peak, increase after 3 days of diving.
Defining what is DCI (Decompression Illness).
The importance of being prepared for DCI-like issues.
What is PFO and what does it mean for the freediver?
An incident Donny experienced after a dive.
What is supraventricular tachycardia and can valsalva manoeuvre fix it?
Better post-black out care for freedivers.
A question from Patreon member Adrian about research on freediving’s effects on brain health and cognitive function.
A question from Patreon member Tony Scafidi about fast dive times making a squeeze more likely.
Jauni’s non-profit organisation for freediving research and awareness (UNU Freediving Foundation).

For all episodes of the Freedive Cafe Podcast, visit www.freedivecafe.com

For freediving courses and training in Dahab, Egypt, visit www.freediveandthrive.com

To support on Patreon: www.patreon.com/freedivecafe

Marco Puliafito is from Sicily, Italy. He left an 18 year career at Pfizer pharmaceutical company to open Italy's first dedicated freediving training centre, Blue World Freediving.

In this episode we discuss:

Shout out to our interpreter Tony Scafidi
It was Donny’s first time in Sicily and first time in Italy.
Marco is from Catania, Sicily.
He started freediving as a child, following in the footsteps of his father who was a strong spearfisherman.
Spearfishing is a huge part of the culture in Sicily.
Marco became a freediving instructor in 2012.
Before that he worked for the Pfizer pharmaceutical company for around 18 years.
Blue World Freediving’s first location is at Santa Tecla Palace Hotel.
Blue World Freediving has a second location at Santa Maria La Scala.
Diving from the shore vs diving from the shore.
The boat is set up with sonar, counter ballast, etc.
Sicily’s water conditions, thermocline, visibility, etc.
What facilities and courses do Blue World Freediving offer?
Shout out to Nutso!
Blue World offer Molchanovs, AIDA, SSI and Apnea Academy courses.
They have seven freediving instructors on the team.
What is the future of Blue World Freediving? Competitions?
What are the main attractions of the island of Sicily?
Marco has never seen Le Grand Bleu!
DESERT ISLAND QUESTIONS - Patreon exclusive content.
Why does Marco freedive?

For all episodes of the Freedive Cafe Podcast, visit www.freedivecafe.com

For freediving courses and training in Dahab, Egypt, visit www.freediveandthrive.com

To support on Patreon: www.patreon.com/freedivecafe

Jeroen is from Belgium. He is a passionate health-care provider working as an intensive care unit nurse, with a love for technical innovation, teaching and diving, and a former business owner in composites resins 3D-shaping for the nautical and entertainment industry.

Jeroen is perhaps best known to us in the freediving community in his role as freediving medic in some of the biggest freediving competitions in the world.
Today’s discussion is a wide-ranging and thorough exploration of freediving medical safety.

In this episode we discuss:

Jeroen is a freediver, intensive care unit nurse and freediving medic.
He also organises safety in a water stage movie studio in Brussels, working with some famous actors.
Prospecting the dive location.
Dealing with therapeutic use exemptions of drugs that could be detected on a doping test.
Rescue protocols for certain incidents.
The use of the pulse oximeter to detect problems in the diver.
Following up with athletes and incident reporting.
Doing scientific research, gathering information during competition periods.
Specific rescue protocols for black outs and squeezes / barotraumas, etc.
Most divers do not respond to the ‘Blow Tap Talk’ protocol after an underwater black out.
Training the other members of the freediving safety team.
The authority to stop the competition.
What is DCI (Decompression Illness)
Decompression sickness and arterial gas embolism (AGE). What is the difference?
How are these conditions treated?
The hot topic of in-water recompression as treatment.
There are no guaranteed safe decompression tables.
The use of breathing oxygen in-water after deep dives as a preventative measure to prevent DCI and as general recovery.
Shout out to the Patreon supporters and thanks for contributing your questions.
An example of the individual nature of symptoms DCI cases.
Some examples of difficult decisions being made: Hanako Hirose, Petar Klovar
What is oedema?
The responsibilities of the freediving governing bodies to do better for the safety of the athletes.
What is a PFO (patent foramen ovale)?
Questions from Patreon supporters Tom, and Racso and Sean.
Should you ever dive alone?
Why does he freedive?

For all episodes of the Freedive Cafe Podcast, visit www.freedivecafe.com

For freediving courses and training in Dahab, Egypt, visit www.freediveandthrive.com

To support on Patreon: www.patreon.com/freedivecafe

Tea Košnjek is a kinesiologist and a strength & conditioning coach working with Olympic-level swimmers and freedivers around the world.

From pool to depth disciplines, she helps athletes optimise their performance by focusing on strength, movement efficiency, and mastering technique.

Between 2018 and 2024, she was the technique and S&C coach for freediver Alenka Artnik, a multiple world champion and world record holder.

Tea continues to support a wide range of freedivers globally—both pool and depth—in unlocking their full potential through strength and technique training.

In this episode we discuss:

Tea is from Slovenia, and has a background in competitive swimming.
She studied kinesiology and started coaching strength and conditioning.
Tea was inspired to look further into freediving when she saw the dives on Diveye.
Tea collaborated with Alenka Artnik (episodes #57 and #154) for many years.
What does ‘training’ mean, actually?
What are the most unique aspects of training for freediving, compared to other sports?
What is periodisation and how to do it.
What can we do during the base training phase?
How gender differences influence training decisions.
About how periods affect hormones and therefore training.
Showing up for training, perceived exertion, mental condition and how it affects motivation.
Deloading before the competition or event.
Specific attention to each freediving discipline:

(See the video version of the podcast on the True Depth Freediving YouTube channel for videos of exercises)

FIM (Free Immersion)
CWTB (Bifins)
CWT (Monofin)
CNF (No Fins)

Comparing the depth disciplines to the pool versions.
Tracking training and progress and what to track.
How to recover from training.
Supplementation (protein, creatine, omega 3, vitamin D)
Sauna, cold plunges, foam rollers, etc.
Advice for coaches on how to motivate and encourage our athletes/coachees.
Tea’s services and Instagram.
DESERT ISLAND QUESTIONS - Patreon Exclusive Section
Why does she freedive?

For all episodes of The Freedive Cafe Podcast, information about freediving courses, coaching, workshops and retreats in Dahab, Egypt, visit www.truedepthfreediving.com

To support on Patreon: www.patreon.com/freedivecafe

Huang Hua Yang is a former farmer and the deepest freediving athlete from the beautiful country of Taiwan. One of the deepest men in the world, he shares his freediving story and philosophy with us.

In this episode we discuss:

Huayang joined us from Panglao, Philippines at the time of recording, where he was training for the Asian Freediving Cup.
Comparing conditions in Panglao and Taiwan.
Donny lived in Taiwan for ten years and started a freediving school there.
Huayang was a farmer from the countryside close to Taoyuan, before he came to freediving in 2011.
Talking of the beauty of Taiwan’s Orchid Island.
Shout out to Wayne and Yen at Weirdos Freediving and Wu How at Deep Soul.
Huayang took his first freediving course in 2015, possibly one of the first PADI freediving courses.
Huayang did his instructor course with JP Francois at Freediving Planet in Moalboal, Philippines.
A question from Patreon supporter Tom Way about the freediving scene in Taiwan.
Taiwanese diver Haixiang beats Alexey in DNF in competition.
About the future of freediving competitions and their taking place in Asia.
Huayang’s journey to depth and competitions.
Shout out to Huayang’s coach Theo-Patrick Fourcade.
What are the fundamentals of training for freediving for Huayang? How has it changed over time?
Does he see any major differences in the training philosophies of Western and Asian freedivers?
Comparing different training approaches of different coaches.
Different athletes need different approaches.
What does it take to dive deeper than 100m?
Huayang’s experience with lung squeeze and how to avoid it?
His experiences with narcosis, how does it feel?
The benefits of RV diving for training compressibility.
How a week of training looks like for him at the moment.
On teaching equalisation to speakers of different languages.
DESERT ISLAND QUESTIONS - PATREON EXCLUSIVE CONTENT
Why does he freedive?

For all episodes of The Freedive Cafe Podcast, information about freediving courses, coaching, workshops and retreats in Dahab, Egypt, visit www.truedepthfreediving.com

To support on Patreon: www.patreon.com/freedivecafe