Don't Hold Your Breath

Or do, because it might set a world record.

Howdy! It’s Joey, back with more Fun Fact Friyay. Today’s fact requires a bit of lung capacity, though thankfully not as much as a world-record holder.

Croatian Vitomir Maričić holds the world record of holding his breath underwater, clocking in at 29 minutes and 3 seconds.

My first-ever job out of college was at a PR agency that had several different clients. One of them was Dos Equis—you may be familiar with their Most Interesting Man in the World spokesperson.

The brand released a series of ads describing things this man had accomplished that other mere mortals could only dream of, such as being the life of parties he’s never attended or how sharks have a week dedicated to him.

“I don’t always drink beer,” he says at the end of each commercial. “But when I do, I prefer Dos Equis. Stay thirsty, my friends.”

While I was at this company, Dos Equis put on a “Most Interesting Show in the World,” to complement the advertising campaign.

Hosted by noted party musician Andrew W.K., the show was a mix of music, acrobatics, aerial performances, and several other stunts of various death-defying levels.

One of the acts was a man who was placed in a straitjacket and then submerged in a tank of water. While pulsating techno music blared over the speakers, we watched this man attempt to extricate himself from the jacket and ultimately get out of the tank before he passed out.

Despite the alternative being death, this was not a very entertaining thing to witness. The man was making some movements, sure, but from our view, it largely looked like a guy just holding his breath underwater. You could see that at your local neighborhood pool!

Of course, it’s pretty impressive to stay underwater for several minutes, especially since the average length of time a human can hold their breath underwater is about 60 to 90 seconds.

Some people have trained themselves to do more than that. The man at The Most Interesting Show in the World certainly had, and so did a man named Vitomir Maričić.

Maričić is a member of Adriatic Freediving. The concept of freediving is simple in idea but difficult in execution: You hold your breath underwater without any breathing apparatus. It requires a mix of mental and physical conditioning, and if you’ve ever tried spending some time underwater, you know it’s not something you can easily pick up.

Yet Maričić stuck with it, and he set his record on June 14, 2025. He lay on his back in a pool that was three meters deep at the Bristol Hotel in Opatija, Croatia. Five official AIDA judges and about 100 fans watched him perform his feat.

The technical Guinness World Record Maričić set is for “longest breath held voluntarily under water using oxygen.” The record includes the ability to breathe pure oxygen for up to 30 minutes before attempting the feat.

Maričić said after the 20-minute mark, everything was easy mentally, but things “got worse and worse physically, especially for my diaphragm, because of the contractions.” Sounds like a very pleasant time.

An extra cool component of these records is that the divers are using the experience to generate awareness for other causes. Maričić sought to bring attention to ocean conservation. The record he beat was held by fellow Croatian, Budimir Šobat.

Sobat’s daughter, Saša, was initially diagnosed with cerebral palsy and later autism and epilepsy. Doctors said she may never walk, but Šobat and his wife Aleksandra spent hours every day helping her train, stretching her muscles, and she eventually took her first steps when she was 2.5 years old. Saša became Šobat’s purpose in life, and he uses his freediving as a way to raise awareness around her condition and helping find additional treatments. Just excellent all around.

We’re approaching summer season, which means more time spent in bodies of water. I hope you find a bit of calm under the surface amidst all the chaos of life.