Medal of the day: Poland’s Julia Malgorzata Kozerska smashes her own world record to claim gold in freediving
What’s the best way to snag headlines and promote the debut of your sport at The World Games? As it turns out, smashing your own world record.
Just ask Poland’s Julia Malgorzata Kozerska, who claimed the first-ever gold medal in freediving at The World Games, completing a dive of 222.5 metres to see off her nearest rivals in the women’s dynamic without fins event.
“I am super happy. I improved my old record by eight meters and a half, so it’s great result, great improvements,” the history-making freediver told Xinhua. “I was expecting something big, but I didn’t expect that I’d go this well.”
Her mark certainly set the tone for a day of big performances in the pool, as three more world records went tumbling in finswimming, while Chinese freedivers blew past their announced distances to claim gold in two para freediving events.
“I’ve been practicing freediving for less than a year, so competing internationally feels like a real privilege,” teenage gold medallist Huang Shiyu – winner of the women’s dynamic with fins (FFS1-FFS2) event – told Xinhua. “Winning gold makes me happy deep down, yet also strangely calm – it just feels like any other training day.”
Alas, the third day of competition at The World Games 2025 was anything, but a normal day in the office for many athletes in Chengdu.