Born: 1974 (Saint-Denis, Seine-Saint-Denis)
Died: 2002 (Bayahibe Beach, Dominican Republic)
Biography:
Audrey Mestre (11 August 1974 – 15 October 2002) was a French world record-setting freediver. Born in Saint-Denis, Seine-Saint-Denis, Audrey came from a family of snorkeling and scuba diving enthusiasts. Her love for the water began at a young age, and she quickly developed strong swimming skills. By the age of thirteen, she had become a seasoned scuba diver, although she had to wait until her sixteenth birthday to obtain full certification due to French law.
In her late teens, Audrey’s family relocated to Mexico City. Fluent in Spanish, she seized the opportunity to study marine biology at a university in La Paz, Mexico. It was during this time that her interest in underwater sports blossomed. In 1996, she crossed paths with free-diver Francisco Pipín Ferreras. Their shared passion for diving sparked a deep connection, leading Audrey to move to Miami, Florida, to live with Ferreras.
Under Ferreras’ tutelage, Mestre devoted herself to serious free-diving. Her talent quickly became evident as she began to break records. In 1999, Audrey made her mark in the diving world when she shattered the female world record by free-diving to an impressive depth of 125 meters (410 ft) on a single breath of air. Just a year later, she surpassed her own achievement, descending to an incredible 130 meters (427 ft).
Sadly, tragedy struck on October 15, 2002, as Audrey Mestre’s ambitious pursuit of breaking the 160-meter no-limits free-diving world record came to a devastating end. Tanya Streeter had set the record a few weeks earlier on August 17, 2002. During a practice dive off Bayahibe Beach in the Dominican Republic, Audrey reached a record depth of 166 meters (545 ft) under the supervision of her husband.
With a determination matched only by her passion, Audrey prepared to attempt a dive to 171 meters. However, when she reached her target depth and opened the valve on her air tank to inflate the lift bag that would propel her rapidly to the surface, she discovered that the cylinder contained no air. A rescue diver rushed to her aid and inflated the lift bag with his own air supply, but it failed to rise quickly enough due to inadequate inflation, a strong current, and the non-vertical riser rope.
Tragically, what should have been a dive lasting no more than three minutes extended to over eight and a half minutes underwater. By the time her husband managed to retrieve her unconscious body and bring her to the surface, it was too late. Audrey was pronounced dead at a hospital onshore.
Audrey Mestre’s untimely death sparked controversy and criticism within the diving community. The setup of the dive did not adhere to common freediving safety standards, with many pointing fingers at her husband, Francisco Ferreras. Despite the tragedy, Audrey Mestre’s legacy endures, as her remarkable achievements and unwavering commitment to the sport continue to inspire future generations of divers.