AQUATIC EVENTS
The animals of the ocean outstrip humans for every record imaginable
Human
DEEPEST DIVE: 332.35 metres
FASTEST SWIM: 5.34 miles per hour
LONGEST DISTANCE SWIM: 139.8 miles
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Leatherback turtle
DEEPEST DIVING REPTILE
DEEPEST DIVE: 1,280 metres
The strangest part about this incredible ability is that we aren’t sure why they can dive so deep. They feed on jellyfish, which generally stay within a few hundred metres of the surface. They could be retreating from predators or feeding on a food source we don’t know about yet.
Leatherbacks can collapse their lungs to avoid decompression sickness. They even divert blood flow away from the lungs and back to the rest of the body to squeeze as much oxygen from it as possible in the deep sea.