MATI CITY, Davao Oriental — The clear water of Pujada Bay here amazed Adam Stern, an 8-time Australian free dive record holder who visited visited the bay for a freediving session on Monday, March 27.
Department of Tourism-XI Regional Director Tanya Rabat Tan invited Stern to dive at the Pujada Bay to promote freediving activities after the successful first-ever Bay Deep Mati Freediving Festival held in September of last year.
The City Information Office of Mati quoted Stern to have said, “We explored Mati Bay and it was just amazing, the corals are beautiful and it’s been a very long time since I’ve seen water so clear.”
“The thing that is most distinctive in the Bay is how clear the water is. I was floating about 50 meters deep today and I can still see the water and the bottom.” Stern said about his unique experience in the City of Mati compared to his other freediving experiences.
“The freediving session of Adam Stern was a success through the initiative of the Department of Tourism XI with the collaborative efforts of the City of Mati LGU and Provincial Local Government Unit, and Glide Freediving and Spearfishing,” the City information said..
Select divers and representatives from Carabao Dive Center (CDD), the Philippine Commission on Sports Scuba Diving (PCSSD), Coast Guard Station of Davao Oriental (CGSD), and the Naval Special Operations Unit 7 under operational Control of Naval Forces Eastern Mindanao (NAVSOG) joined Stern in the dive session.
“The thing that is most distinctive in the Bay is how clear the water is. I was floating about 50 meters deep today and I can still see the water and the bottom.” Stern added
City Mayor Michelle Rabat welcomed the positive remarks from Stern who shared his wonderful experience in the City through their meet-and-greet.
Rabat added that various water activities are waiting to be explored in Mati City, especially once Mati Airport starts its operation.
“The asset of Mati is its waters. It’s a City of Beautiful Bays, we should showcase and promote these,” Rabat said.
With the success of the event, DOT XI Regional Director Tanya Tan, in partnership with the Mati City, hopes to bring some of Sterns’ freediving events to the City such as the “Deep Week” where students and freedivers from all over the world visit and free dive a diving spot.
Stern’s Deep Week sessions in the past were held in Mt. Gambier, Australia; Thailand; and the Bahamas.
After the freediving session in the City of Bays, Stern is going home to Australia to prepare for another Deep Week freediving activity in April 2023 to be held in Croatia, and Bali, Indonesia.
