The Fazza Championship for Freediving 2015 concluded on Saturday with an exciting finish, bringing with it some unexpected results and new names to the diving circle.

In the Professionals category, Goran Colak from Croatia clocked a time of 8 minutes and 36 seconds to wrest the title from last year’s champion Branko Petrovic after the latter was disqualified on grounds of negligence to safety. Veljano Zanki from Croatia finished a close second at 8 minutes and 4 seconds.

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“Winning the title is a wonderful feeling and it is quite impressive that Dubai is not just a modern city but also tries to preserve its heritage through championships like these,” said an ecstatic Goran after his victory.

A surprising turn of events came with Natalia Molchanova from Russia finishing third to become the first ever lady freediver to be in the top three rung of the Fazza Championship.

Hamad Saaed Fareej finished first in the GCC and UAE Nationals category and created a new record, relegating three-time Fazza champion Nasser Abd Khalfan to the second place. In the Juniors category, 12-year-old Ahmad Ali Al Zarooi finished first to take home the trophy.

Hamad, who works with Abu Dhabi Police, said that the training sessions and the endless hours of practice helped him in the day’s victory.

“I strongly urge all Emirati divers to participate in this championship to explore your true potential,” he added.

Perhaps the greatest disappointment of the day involved what happened to Branko Petrovic. Post the semi-finals, all eyes were on the world champion and previous Fazza winner. The 28-year-old from Serbia was off to a promising start in the semi-finals as he set a new Fazza record in the ‘Professionals’ category, clocking in at 10 minutes and 27 seconds.