A freediver has gone missing and is presumed dead off the coast of Egypt.
Despite having set records for diving to depths without a mask, Andrea Zuccari disappeared while scuba diving in the Red Sea on 28 August.
Though authorities have found some of his equipment, the Italian national has yet to be found.
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Zuccari had been undertaking a routine scuba close to Sharm el Sheikh to conduct maintenance work on connection cables on a dive platform.
During the trip, he used equipment including a backplate-and-wing and a scooter as he dived to depths of around 45-50m.
Tragically, the 48-year-old never surfaced.
Authorities launched an investigation and found parts of the diver's equipment during their search.
However, they have yet to locate Zuccari – who is missing and presumed dead off the coast of the popular resort.
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His disappearance has sparked concern, given his familiarity with the waters around the area and the wealth of experience he had as a diver.
In fact, Zuccari had previously set the record as the man to freedive the deepest while wearing a mask in Sharm el Sheikh.
Prior to the impressive record, the young Zuccari trained as a scuba instructor in the popular resort.
Eventually, he found his passion for freediving and began setting records from 2007 onwards.
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The Italian native even set up the Freediving World Apnea Centre at the holiday destination in 2012, with people coming from all over the world to train at the site.
Two years later, Zuccari set a record for freediving by diving to a depth of 175m without a mask.
He achieved the feat in just 3 minutes and 13 seconds, setting an Italian record and becoming the second deepest male freediver in the world.
According to Deeper Blue, he later told the press: “This result worth double for me as it is not only the Italian record but also the world's deepest dive ever wearing the mask.”
He later broke his own record in 2017, when he reached 185m without a mask.
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Zuccari also set several tandem No Limits records for the extreme sport and had been intending to take part in the Freediving World Cup later this year - sharing promos on his social media.
Sadly though, there is now little hope that the diver will be found as he's already been missing for four days.
Topics: World News
Katherine Sidnell