SALT LAKE CITY — Emily Padjen, who goes by simply Padjen, is a Utah native and USA free-diver based out of the Caribbean island of Dominica. She recently set a record in free immersion with CMAS USA (Confédération Mondiale des Activités Subaquatiques, which translates to "World Confederation of Underwater Activities").
Her new CMAS USA record is 85 meters, which is 279 feet. That dive took her 3 minutes and 30 seconds of holding her breath and diving to the ocean floor.
A sport that not many understand became the love of her life.
"I think for me, because I'm such a type-A personality, it slows me down. As I'm diving, I become slower, I have more patience, I have more empathy," Padgen said. "I always say it makes me a better person. It sounds cheesy, but it's true. I love doing it."
Simply put, "free-diving is taking one breath of air and diving as deep as you can in the ocean," Padjen added.
She says it's a sport that is 95% mental and just 5% physical. She told FOX 13 that the breath hold isn't the hard part, but equalizing her ears.
Padjen's passion for free-diving led to her opening a women-owned diving center in Dominica in 2022. The center is called Deep Dominica, a place where divers can train, learn, compete and even do volunteer work on the island.
"I've been all over the world, and still Utah takes my breath away and Dominica takes my breath away. I feel very fortunate I get to be in both worlds," she said.
