Marcus Greatwood
Encyclopedia
Marcus Greatwood is a British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

 freediving coach. Although an international coach he is most noted for his inception and development of "NT Style" Freediving, based on relaxation and breathing techniques (1st published in 2008). Marcus has coached 5 world records with Herbert Nitsch
Herbert Nitsch
Herbert Nitsch is an Austrian free-diver who has held world records in all of the eight apnea free-diving disciplines recognised by AIDA International. He is the current freediving world record champion and “the deepest man on earth”. This title was given to him, when he set the current world...

 including the 214m NoLimits record http://www.aida-international.org/aspportal1/code/page.asp?sType=wr&CountryID=4&actID=3&ObjectID=136 set in 2007. Marcus designed and built the equalisation tool that allowed Herbert Nitsch to dive past 200m. He has coached many athletes, setting 12 National records in all of the AIDA
Aida
Aida sometimes spelled Aïda, is an opera in four acts by Giuseppe Verdi to an Italian libretto by Antonio Ghislanzoni, based on a scenario written by French Egyptologist Auguste Mariette...

 recognised disciplines http://www.divernet.com/home_diving_news/293330/uk_freediving_record.html. He has personally held several UK records in depth apnea
Apnea
Apnea, apnoea, or apnœa is a term for suspension of external breathing. During apnea there is no movement of the muscles of respiration and the volume of the lungs initially remains unchanged...

 free-diving disciplines recognized by AIDA International
AIDA International
The International Association for Development of Apnea is the world wide rule- and record-keeping body for competitive breath holding events . It aims to set standards for safety, comparability of Official World Record attempts and freedive education...

 http://www.britishfreediving.org/docs/uk_records.xls. His Club Freediving (NoTanx) based in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...

 is now the largest group of freedivers in the UK has grown exponentially since 2001 to having 5 weekly pool sessions with 80+ active members. All training is split into Yin and Yang
Yin and yang
In Asian philosophy, the concept of yin yang , which is often referred to in the West as "yin and yang", is used to describe how polar opposites or seemingly contrary forces are interconnected and interdependent in the natural world, and how they give rise to each other in turn. Opposites thus only...

, with an emphasis placed on Yin (soft, slow & internal).

International Coach

Marcus's first world record was as adjutant
Adjutant
Adjutant is a military rank or appointment. In some armies, including most English-speaking ones, it is an officer who assists a more senior officer, while in other armies, especially Francophone ones, it is an NCO , normally corresponding roughly to a Staff Sergeant or Warrant Officer.An Adjutant...

 to Herbert Nitsch
Herbert Nitsch
Herbert Nitsch is an Austrian free-diver who has held world records in all of the eight apnea free-diving disciplines recognised by AIDA International. He is the current freediving world record champion and “the deepest man on earth”. This title was given to him, when he set the current world...

 during the World Championships in Hurghada
Hurghada
Hurghada is a city in the Red Sea Governorate of Egypt. It is a main tourist center and second largest city in Egypt located on the Red Sea coast.- Overview :...

, Egypt
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...

,in December 2006, Herbert set the Constant Weight dive of 111 m, and also claimed the Static Apnea record of 9:04.
In 2007 Herbert set the world record in Spetses
Spetses
Spetses is an island and a municipality in the Islands regional unit, Attica, Greece. It is sometimes included as one of the Saronic Islands. Until 1948, it was part of the old prefecture of Argolidocorinthia, which is now split into Argolis and Corinthia...

, Greece
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....

 http://www.aida-international.org/aspportal1/code/page.asp?sType=wr&CountryID=4&actID=3&ObjectID=136 in June 2007 when he achieved 214 m (702 ft) in Spetses
Spetses
Spetses is an island and a municipality in the Islands regional unit, Attica, Greece. It is sometimes included as one of the Saronic Islands. Until 1948, it was part of the old prefecture of Argolidocorinthia, which is now split into Argolis and Corinthia...

, Greece
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....

 on a revolutionary sled. Marcus designed and built the EqEx (Equalisation Extension tool) that allowed Herbert to equalise his ears deeper than 200m. Marcus helped Herbert to set the Constant weight (No Fins) record during The Triple Depth in Dahab, Egypt, to 83m http://www.aida-international.org/aspportal1/code/page.asp?sType=wr&CountryID=4&actID=3&ObjectID=136 and went onto push the Constant record to 112m http://www.aida-international.org/aspportal1/code/page.asp?sType=wr&CountryID=4&actID=3&ObjectID=136 during the World Championships in Sharm el Sheik.

Marcus has recently coached relative newcomer and rising UK star Alan Barber to a Dynamic No Fins record of 127m http://www.britishfreediving.org/index.asp?sec=10 and several Dynamic Records culminating in the 2009 record of 202m.

Marcus is now coaching Sam Still (Former world Freediving champion) http://aida2010.net/english/result.html as well as a group of other athletes from the NoTanx Stable.

Innovations in freediving

Marcus worked closely with World Record holder and founder of AIDA International
AIDA International
The International Association for Development of Apnea is the world wide rule- and record-keeping body for competitive breath holding events . It aims to set standards for safety, comparability of Official World Record attempts and freedive education...

 Loïc Leferme
Loïc Leferme
Loïc Leferme was a French diver who was the world free diving record holder until 2 October 2005, when he was surpassed by Herbert Nitsch. Loic was also a founder of AIDA in 1990 with Roland Specker and Claude Chapuis in Nice. In 2002 he set the world free diving record without any breathing...

from 2001 helping to develop the Lanyard and techniques that have become integral parts of competitive freediving.
Loic's concept of relaxation and enjoyment was inspirational and Instrumental in the NTStyle. Psychological emphasised and correctly constructed training regiemes devised by Marcus were innovations within the sport in 2003-4. ("Principles of correct training") [Deep Freediving, ISBN 978-0-9567326-0-6]

"Competitive" freediver

Marcus is an international freediver in his own right. He set his first 2 UK records, Free Immersion -47m and Constant weight No fins -25m, in NDAC in 2003. http://www.britishfreediving.org/index.asp?sec=10&pag=101 and bettered the Free Immersion to 50m in 2004.http://www.britishfreediving.org/docs/uk_records.xls. In 2007 he was ranked 13 in the World. He started competing again in 2010 http://fddnews.blogspot.com/2010_05_01_archive.html although his competitive dives are marked by his reluctance to take them seriously http://youtube.com/watch?v=RUFuvY0Pjo4

Relaxation therapist

Building on the NT Style freediving, Marcus teaches derivatives of the techniques to a huge range of people. Through seminars, small group tutorials and one to one coaching he shows that efficient brain function and relaxation have benefits throughout life.
http://www.divernet.com/home_diving_news/420864/freedive_display_comes_to_london_dive_show.html

Marcus claims that his techniques have been used for:
SCUBA diving (extended dive time), General sports (focus and relaxation), Exam preparation (stress control).
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