One Breath is a gripping and powerful exploration of the strange and
fascinating sport of freediving, and of the tragic, untimely death of
America's greatest freediver.
Competitive freediving - a sport built on diving as deep as possible on
a single breath - tests the limits of human ability in the most hostile
environment on earth. The unique and eclectic breed of individuals who
freedive at the highest level regularly dive hundreds of feet below the
ocean's surface, reaching such depths that their organs compress, light
disappears, and one mistake could kill them.
Even among freedivers, few have ever gone as deep as Nicholas Mevoli. A
handsome young American with an unmatched talent for the sport, Nick was
among freediving's brightest stars. He was also an extraordinary
individual, one who rebelled against the vapid and commoditized society
around him by relentlessly questing for something more meaningful and
authentic, whatever the risks. So when Nick Mevoli arrived at Vertical
Blue in 2013, the world's premier freediving competition, he was widely
expected to challenge records and continue his meteoric rise to stardom.
Instead, before the end of that fateful competition Nick Mevoli had
died, a victim of the sport that had made him a star, and the very
future of free diving was called into question.
With unparalleled access and masterfully crafted prose, One Breath
tells his unforgettable story, and of the sport which shaped and
ultimately destroyed him.
