Welcome
to the Medfish Freediving school. Here you can find the latest information about our courses, workshops and training camps. Please take a look at our pages to learn more about our team, courses and activities.
Courses
Medfish Freediving School is giving AIDA freediving courses and special diving workshops to introduce and enhance freediving skills to all level freedivers and spear fishermen. There is always a program in our school which you can attend and push your skills one step further!
AIDA 1 STAR
Discover Freediving!
No matter what your background in diving is, the AIDA 1star Freediver will open your mind to a whole new underwater experience. You will learn the basic theory of Freediving and how to prepare yourself for a breathold dive. This course is designed to be an introduction to freediving for the complete beginner. It aims to help the student to develop basic skills, knowledge and safety procedures necessary to enjoy freediving safely within the limits of their experience.
Prerequisites:
- Be 18 years of age or older (16 years with parent or guardian consent)
- Be able to swim at least 100m non stop
- Have completed the AIDA Medical Form
- Have completed the Liability Release
Gear Requirements:
- Mask, Snorkel
- Bi-Fins
- Wetsuit or appropriate exposure protection
- Weightbelt
Topics:
- Breathing for freediving – Breathing exercises
- Equalisation – the need to equalise and basic equalisation techniques
- Safety for freediving, avoiding and reacting to blackout and loss of motor control
- Freediving and Scuba Diving – combining the two safely
- Key rules to remember for freediving safely
Duration and Course Outline:
- Full day course
- Equipment preparation for the dive
- Breathing techniques
- Duck dives
- Finning technique
- Safety and rescue
What’s included:
- AIDA 1 STAR Freediving Manual
- Pool Session (if decided)
- Open Water Session with boat
Cost:
- €75 + VAT
Remember, a little challenge is always good to be more successful. To successfully complete the AIDA 1star freediver course you will have to perform a 1 minute 15 second breathold and swim 25 m underwater with fins.
AIDA 2 STAR
Open Water Freediver!
This is probably the most challenging and rewarding AIDA course. For those who are already confident in the open water this course is your starting point. The course builds a foundation of good technique and safety so that you can buddy with other AIDA 2 star freedivers.
It is designed to be a freediving beginner course for students who are already confident and happy in the water. The purpose of the course is to familiarise the student with the skills, knowledge, planning, organisation, safety procedures, techniques, problems, hazards and enjoyment of breath hold freediving
Prerequisites:
- Be 18 years of age or older (16 years with parent or guardian consent)
- Be able to swim at least 200m non stop without fins and at least 300m non stop with mask, fins and snorkel
- Have completed the AIDA Medical Form
- Have completed the Liability Release
Gear Requirements:
- Mask, Snorkel
- Bi-Fins
- Wetsuit or appropriate exposure protection
- Weightbelt
- Lanyard (if appropriate)
Main Topics:
- Breathing for freediving and exercises
- Static and Dynamic pool training
- Depth and Pressure- Equalisation
- Safety- BO and LMC (pool and open water)
- Diving techniques (pool and open water)
- Diving and training with your buddy
- Key rules to remember for freediving safely
Duration and Course Outline:
- Three day course
- Two theory sessions
- Two pool sessions
- Three open water sessions
What’s included:
- AIDA 2 STAR Freediving Manual
- Pool Sessions
- Open Water Sessions with boat
Cost:
- €250 + VAT
AIDA 3 STAR
Intermediate Freediver!
Interested in going deeper and improving your technique? This course goes into the theory of Freediving in more depth which will allow you to understand the physiology and techniques behind diving deeper. It will help you improve your freediving performance whilst advancing your safety and rescue skills.
The aim of the course is to develop the skills and knowledge necessary to independently plan and participate in freediving activities with similarly experienced freedive buddies. AIDA 3 star is also designed to develop new skills and techniques for freediving. We will be training these skills in the most common disciplines of freediving; Static Apnea, Dynamic Apnea and Constant Weight.
Prerequisites:
- Be 18 years of age or older (16 years with parent or guardian consent)
- Have completed the AIDA ** Freediver course or equivalent, or have participated in 5 AIDA ranked comps, within the last 6 years with AIDA ranked results of at least 35m CWT, 3.45min static and 75m DYN and have passed the AIDA** Exam.
- Have completed the AIDA Medical Form
- Have completed the Liability Release
Gear Requirements:
- Mask, Snorkel
- Bi-Fins
- Wetsuit or appropriate exposure protection
- Weightbelt
- Lanyard (if appropriate)
- Nose Clip (optional)
- Goggles (optional)
Main Topics:
- Physics and physiology of freediving
- Training concepts and how to design a custom training schedule
- Deeper equalisation
- Advanced diving techniques
- Advanced safety and rescue training
Duration and Course Outline:
- At least three days course
- Three theory sessions
- Two pool sessions
- Four open water sessions
What’s included:
- AIDA 3 STAR Freediving Manual
- Pool Sessions
- Open Water Sessions with boat
Cost:
- €270 + VAT
Spearfisherman 1
You can be a weekend spearfisherman or an avid adventurer running after the big catches. There is always a room to learn new techniques or to improve existing ones. This course will give you the insight to understand the philosophy of freediving. Spearfisherman 1 is designed to introduce the basic freediving techniques and information to an average spearfisherman.
Correcting your freediving technique, understanding the physiology and practicing the crucial safety procedures will give you and your buddy more confidence and capability while spearfishing.
Note: This is not a spearfishing class but a freediving workshop in which you can develop your apnea skills to fish safer and more comfortable.
Prerequisites:
- Be 18 years of age or older (16 years with parent or guardian consent)
- Have completed the AIDA ** equivalent, or have enough experience to understand basic freediving concepts.
- Have completed the Medical Form
- Have completed the Liability Release
Gear Requirements:
- Mask, Snorkel
- Bi-Fins
- Wetsuit or appropriate exposure protection
- Weightbelt
Main Topics:
- Physics and physiology of freediving
- Getting ready for spearfishing
- Proper Breathing and reducing the risks
- Rescue and safety training
- Diving techniques
- Buddy procedures and spearfishing with a buddy
Duration and Course Outline:
- At least three days course
- Two theory sessions
- One pool session (if decided)
- At least three open water sessions
What’s included:
- Freediving for Spearfishing 1 Manual
- Pool Sessions (if decided)
- Open Water Sessions with boat
Cost:
- €250 + VAT
Spearfisherman 2
If spearfishing is not a spare time hobby for you any more and you want to take it more serious, then this course is for you. Adding crucial diving and safety techniques on your already established basic diving skills will open a new window in your spearfishing career. It will help you improve your spearfishing performance whilst advancing your safety and rescue skills. Candidates will have a deeper understanding in deeper dives and avoiding the unnecessary risks.
Note: This is not a spearfishing class but a freediving workshop in which you can develop your apnea skills to fish safer and more comfortable.
Prerequisites:
- Be 18 years of age or older (16 years with parent or guardian consent)
- Have completed the AIDA *** equivalent, or Spearfisherman 1.
- Have completed the Medical Form
- Have completed the Liability Release
Gear Requirements:
- Mask, Snorkel
- Bi-Fins
- Wetsuit or appropriate exposure protection
- Weightbelt
Main Topics:
- A deeper approach on safety
- Understanding depth and pressure
- Deeper equalisation
- Advanced diving techniques
- Advanced safety and rescue training
- Role of buddy during deep dives
Duration and Course Outline:
- At least three days course
- Two theory sessions
- Two pool session
- At least four open water sessions
What’s included:
- Freediving for Spearfishing 2 Manual
- Pool Sessions
- Open Water Sessions with boat
Cost:
- €270 + VAT
Spearfisherman 3
The Spearfisherman 3 course is an advanced freediving course, designed to continue a spearfisherman’s training beyond the level of Spearfisherman 2. It aims to meet the needs of underwater hunters who want to aim big trophies in challenging deep waters. Students will be familiarised with the techniques, knowledge and safety procedures for deep diving.
This course is designed to implement very advanced diving techniques and methods to reach great depths with the ultimate safety during spearfishing. Candidates are responsible to be in good physical condition. Guest instructors and celebrities from spearfishing world will occasionally join the groups and share their experiences. Remember, you should take an emergency first aid training before this course.
Note: This is not a spearfishing class but a freediving workshop in which you can develop your apnea skills to fish safer and more comfortable.
Prerequisites:
- Be 18 years of age or older (16 years with parent or guardian consent)
- Have completed the AIDA *** equivalent, Spearfisherman 2
- Have completed an emergency first aid course or “Advanced Safety & EFR”
- Have completed the Medical Form
- Have completed the Liability Release
Gear Requirements:
- Mask, Snorkel
- Bi-Fins
- Wetsuit or appropriate exposure protection
- Weightbelt
Main Topics:
- Decompression Sickness, Narcosis and their physiology
- Advanced training for deep spearfishing
- Fitness for spearfishing- aerobic and anaerobic training, diet
- Deep rescue and trouble scenarios
- Variable weight diving
- Planning a deep spearfishing session
Duration and Course Outline:
- At least four days course
- Two theory sessions
- One stretching session
- One pool session (if decided)
- At least four open water sessions
What’s included:
- Freediving for Spearfishing 3 Manual
- Pool Sessions
- Open Water Sessions with boat
Cost:
- Please contact to arrange
Breathing & Freediving Yoga
By definition, Freediving is the event in which you discover the underwater world with a single breath-hold. That single breath-hold is golden for us and in this course we will be focusing on exercises to discover the hidden potential in out bodies. It is a known fact that certain Yoga exercises are beneficial to increase chest flexibility and to improve breath-holding. With our yoga teacher, we’ve already designed a special class for you to improve your breathing and athletic skills.
You can easily combine this course with another freediving course in our program.
Prerequisites:
- Be 18 years of age or older (16 years with parent or guardian consent)
- Have completed the Medical Form
- Have completed the Liability Release
Gear Requirements:
- Comfortable clothes
- Yoga mat (if you have one)
Duration and Course Outline:
- One hour sessions
- Breathing exercises
- Yoga for freediving
Cost:
- €25/session + VAT
Advanced Safety & EFR
Every year we hear about victims of shallow water black out and a lot more about the individual experiences which divers survived by chance. We have designed you a special one day course full of practice and proper first aid training. You will be practicing the real life scenarios of blackout and loss of motor control victims and learn how to recover a diver, how to take primary action and how to respond to life threatening emergencies. Although our course is based on Free Diving Safety, you will have the “Emergency First Response” certification at the end of the day.
This course will qualify participants to practice all vital first aid skills (including CPR) and will teach them to recover and stabilize a shallow water blackout and LMC (loss of motor control) victim.
Prerequisites:
- Be 18 years of age or older (16 years with parent or guardian consent)
- Have completed the Medical Form
- Have completed the Liability Release
Gear Requirements:
- Mask, Snorkel
- Bi-Fins
- Wetsuit or appropriate exposure protection
- Weightbelt
- Lanyard (if appropriate)
- Nose Clip (optional)
- Goggles (optional)
Main Topics:
- Physiology of Blackout and Loss of Motor Control in freediving
- Breathing exercises to prevent accidents
- Rescue and safety training
- Emergency First Response training
- Real time scenario training
Duration and Course Outline:
- Full day course
- One water session
- Two theory sessions
What’s included:
- Full day out with ISIS Dive Boat (including lunch).
Cost:
- €120 + VAT
Customized Courses
Medfish Freediving School is also offering customized courses for individuals and groups. You may be interested in learning the details of a specific technique or simply dying to have a proper training camp! We can arrange you a special program full of fun and aimed to get the best results.
Please contact us to arrange the details and content of the package in your mind.
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AIDA 1 STAR
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AIDA 2 STAR
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AIDA 3 STAR
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Spearfisherman 1
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Spearfisherman 2
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Spearfisherman 3
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Breathing & Freediving Yoga
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Advanced Safety & EFR
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Customized Courses
Medfish Freediving
Our School
For some it is just madness and for some other people it is an affection which shapes the life around it. Freediving in other words, breath-hold diving is a recreational activity in which the athlete dives with a single breath hold. Although it sounds simple mastering the full technique requires lots of practice and challenges are almost infinite. Every meter that you fin down is a new challenge in a freediver’s career. The freedom of diving without any apparatus and discovering the world of blue in the simplest
form makes this sport, the ultimate meditation for most. Besides being an excellent relaxing activity for spare times, freediving is an international competitive sport. Athletes are today discovering the limits and capabilities of human body by diving over 200m with a single breath. Medfish Freediving School is giving AIDA International courses which set the standard in international freediving education. The AIDA ladder supports your development as a freediver all the way from beginner to a master freediver or an instructor.
Location
Bodrum, formerly Halicarnassus, from Ancient Greek is a Turkish port town in Muğla Province, in the southwestern Aegean Region of the country. It is located on the southern coast of Bodrum Peninsula, at a point that checks the entry into the Gulf of Gökova, and it faces the Greek island of Kos. Today, it is an international center of tourism and yachting. The Bodrum peninsula is giving favourable conditions for diving with its safe, warm and turquoise waters regardless of weather conditions.
Crystal clear waters of Bodrum usually gives a magnificant visibility of 30m (25C water temp) in summer and around 20m (16C water temp) in winter months. Active social life in Bodrum will definitely keep you entertained in the non-water hours of your diving trip. The quality of service in town and the Aegean cousine will make you fall in love with this magnificant port town. You will not only get spectacular diving but also make your partner very happy who wants to spend some quality time in this turquoise dream town.
Services
Here in Medfish Freediving School, we have access to a 25m semi-olympic swimming pool to practice dynamic and static pool sessions. Apart from freediving instructor a full time life guard will be with us for further safety. Location is central and there is almost no time loss in between sessions.
Gündoğan Bay which our school is based on, gives us access to deep training waters for any level of training. All of the open water sessions will take place with a rigid inflatable boat which gives enough comfort and safety during training intervals.
About
MEDFISH
Mediterranean Fishing has started it’s journey in 2005 as an online forum aiming to gather spearfishermen of Mediterranean sea. Soon after its launch, the common values of sustainable fishing and responsible freediving gathered a lot of attention from all around the world. Today, Medfish team is running both a forum and an online magazine to give the latest information about freediving and spearfishing. From the very beginner to world champion freedivers/spearfisherman, Medfish is a big social network.
AIDA INTERNATIONAL
AIDA International is a non profit organisation that was founded in 1992 to further the development of freediving. Over the years AIDA International have defined disciplines in freediving and recognise and authenticate world records achieved in these disciplines. Today majority of the most serious athletes in freediving world are competing in AIDA championships and AIDA freediving education is setting a benchmark. As an organisation, AIDA is made up of world class freedivers who lives to develop the beautiful sport of breath-hold diving.
Team
Mehmet Arıkök
(Medfish Diving Founder, Main Instructor)
Born in 1978 Mehmet has started freediving at the very early age of 6 with his father. Since year 2000, he has been travelling around the world to dive in new waters and to learn more about the art of freediving. In 2005 with three of his friends, he has established the online portal of Mediterranean Fishing (medfish.com) to unite spearfishermen of Mediterranean countries. In the mean time, same group has initiated another local website to focus on sustainable fishing and overall nature protection (amator-balikcilik.com). He is the Med-Europe region manager of Deep Worldwide magazine and a full time columninst in the same magazine. He is an AIDA International Instructor and a sea lover.
Dimitris Kollias (Guest Instructor)
Chief editor of Deep Magazines and one of the best spearfisherman around. Dimitris is a CMAS and AIDA instructor which will be participating in courses of Medfish Diving School.
Linda Paganelli (Guest Instructor)
The queen bee of freediving world, Linda is without a question one of the most experienced Instructor Trainers of AIDA and SSI. She will be with us in advanced level classes.
Yener Çeltikçi (Guest Instructor)
CMAS and PADI Master Scuba Diver Trainer and Emergency First Response instructor. Yener will be with us in our advanced safety and EFR classes, sharing his great knowledge about safety and first aid training.
Yasemin Ünal(Guest Instructor)
Yasemin will be with us when we are practicing relaxation techniques and practice special stretching sessions especially designed for freediving.
Manolis Giankos (Guest Instructor)
Owner of Njord Diving School and Greek Champion in both freediving and spearfishing. Manolis is a true athlete who will be participating our workshops. Manolis is also a CMAS and AIDA instructor.
Victor Abellan (Guest Instructor)
Owner of Abellansub and one of the most avid spearfisherman in the world. Victor will be joining the advanced spearfisherman classes of Medfish Diving School.
Vassilis Gkaroutsos
CMAS, AIDA & SSI freediving instructor and instructor of the Njord Freediving School. Vassilis is a valuable member of our team and will be with us in big workshops.
Events
Medfish Freediving School is having regular courses in Bodrum area. However there is always an option for us to come near you and arrange a class in your own waters. Please don’t hesitate to contact us for details.
In our 2012 schedule, we’ve tried to organise courses which everyone can join without a problem. We are running our classes and activities 7 days of the week and you are always more than welcome to join us. If you have a specific date in your mind, please don’t hesitate to contact us.
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Contact Us
Please do not hesitate to write us about any of your questions regarding courses, scheduling, workshops and upcoming events.