Diving: world record of Xavier Meniscus in the footsteps of Cousteau in Font-Estramar

On January 6, at about 8 a.m., 55-year-old Xavier Menisque, an extreme diver, after 18 minutes of descent, reached one of the bottoms of Font-Estramar, a sandbank at minus 312 m, setting a new world record for cave diving (cave diving). He descended cables that he himself laid to a height of 286 m in six successive explorations since 2013 and discovered the descent passages himself. Then, relying on crackers laid in December last year at an altitude of 300 m by Marseillais Frederic Swierczynski, the author of the previous record at an altitude of minus 308 m.

“At an altitude of 312 m we do not touch the bottom of this flooded abyss. In front of me there is still a gallery that levels out and goes even deeper,” says Xavier Menisque, who took over analytical research for the University of Aix-en-Provence. He joins a very closed global circle of nine autonomous divers who have broken the 300-meter barrier, of which only two are underground: himself and Swierczynski.

“35 years of experience as a professional diver”

“To reach this point requires 35 years of professional diver experience and 25 years of sport diving experience. At this depth, you need to master everything, keep in mind all the experience in order to overcome the difficulties that arise,” explains Xavier Menisque, who on January 6 encountered an inner ear problem during an ascent to minus sixty meters… A situation that could cost him dearly. “I took the necessary steps to restore the situation,” he breathes. Because the whole accident was in my head. It took me an hour. Everything ended well. »

Xavier Menisque spends his life underwater, in work boxes, diving to depths of up to 300 m in the Gulf of Guinea to extract oil or in France to inspect dams or precious fresh water reserves. “My childhood was shocked by the exploits of Commander Cousteau on Sunday television. Cousteau himself came to dive in Font-Extramar, as did Harun Taziev, great explorers,” continues Dromois, who received diving training in the 1980s with the 13th Engineer Regiment based in Trier (French troops in Germany), after four years of sports. swimming in Font-Rome, then in Toulouse. Before starting a career as a professional diver, especially with Comex.

“I promised those around me that I would not go deeper”

“Xavier is an exceptional diver, very experienced and with an extraordinary mentality. He masters everything and carefully prepares his research,” analyzes Henri Benedittini, former director of the Sdis de l’Aude and leader of this expedition, which brought together eleven experienced volunteer divers who arrived with their own equipment and at their own expense, simply to facilitate the pleasure a feat of Xavier Meniscus, who is able to perform extreme dives with an oxygen supply of about thirty hours thanks to safe and ultra-efficient rebreathers of his own design.

“My neighbor Frederic Badier is both a diver and an engineer. He developed them in his garage to capture oxygen and enrich the air we breathe with oxygen,” explains the new world record holder, who has just achieved his lifelong dream of diving below 300m on his own. He is preparing a series of conferences to host Worldwide. “I promised those who remained in Valencia (Mireille, his partner, Nicole, his mother) that I won’t dig deeper,” he finally admits. Thus, allowing you to combine legitimate pride and peace of mind in the future.