This is the incredible moment a woman breaks a world record by swimming more than 350ft in a free dive.
Alessia Zecchini, from Rome, Italy, held her breath for more than three and a half minutes as she swam almost the length of a football field.
Footage captured the 26-year-old prepare herself for the challenge at the VB 2018 Diving Championship, in Deans Blue Hole, Bahamas.
Alessia Zecchini, from Rome, Italy prepares herself for the challenge at the VB 2018 Diving Championship, in Deans Blue Hole, Bahamas
Ms Zecchini plunges downwards into the water using a monofin attached to her feet
She takes sharp intakes of breath at the surface of the water before plunging into the water.
She can be seen calmly swimming downwards using a monofin attached to her feet to propel her body through the water.
The talented freediver descends while attached to a rope and uses her arms to guide herself to as far as she can go.
In the medium she competes in – constant weight apnea – freedivers are allowed to use their arms without pulling on the rope.
Soon the water begins to get dark as the sunlight can no longer penetrate through the ocean
Soon the water begins to get dark as the sunlight can no longer penetrate through the ocean, but Ms Zecchini keeps swimming down.
Footage captures the diver reaching a platform and ripping off a tag from it before turning around and boosting upwards.
After breaking the astonishing record she rapidly swims as fast as possible back to the surface to get air.
Footage captures the diver reaching a platform and ripping off a tag from it before boosting upwards
As she nears the surface she is met by support divers who help her steady her pace to the end of the dive.
At the surface Ms Zecchini can be seen beaming with a smile as cheers erupt from the crowd.
The new record added an additional five meters to a distance Ms Zecchini set in 2017.
As she nears the surface she is met by support divers who help her steady her pace
Ms Zecchini, who took her first apnea diving course at 13, said: ‘I tried not to think about anything, only to focus on what I’m doing and try to feel positive feelings.
‘I was very happy and satisfied – it was such a beautiful dive with very nice feelings.
‘My first time in a pool was when I was 11, in a swimming school.
‘Since I was younger, I loved to swim and try to go deep in the sea during holidays.
‘I will try to go deeper, for sure, in training and in competition.’
Ms Zecchini can be seen beaming with a smile as cheers erupt from the crowd