Freediving is dangerous at the very best of times. Diving into the pitch-black unknown on only one breath.
But one competitive freediver couldn’t resist breaking the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz to return to his favourite spot.
The Strait is currently the centre of the Iran war, which has seen cargo shipping lanes grind to a halt amid fears of sea mines and Donald Trump’s‘shoot to kill’ order against small Iranian boats deploying them.
But Mr Khurana still finds his sense of peace on the centre of this warzone. He even says the blockade and the absence of international shipping have allowed marine life to thrive greater than ever.
He told the Metro: ‘I even have been on dive trips in most parts of the world — the Maldives, Asia, the Red Sea, and Europe.
‘But I promise you, there is no such thing as a diving spot that compares with the Strait of Hormuz. I first went three years ago and have been in love with it ever since.
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‘It was amazing. It was clear that the ocean is doing well. It was a bit green and algae-filled, with jellyfish.
‘There have been fish all over the place, and the fish-eaters on the boat were very pleased with what they caught.’
Just two hours drive from his home in Dubai, the placement had turn into deeply personal.
In his many dives, he has encountered whale sharks, hammerheads and even the elusive mola mola.
Night dives in complete darkness, he said, were something he trusted here greater than anywhere else.
‘There are only a few spots I feel so secure diving at night,’ he added.
Because the Iran war began, he has stayed away before he went back last week. He joined the identical trusted boat crew he had dived with greater than 15 times, but there have been moments of trepidation.
Crew members were nervous they’d ventured too deep into the Strait and were at risk of being boarded by Iranian speedboats or crushed by US warships patrolling the region.
However the freediver saw no naval battles and didn’t pay any tolls. He said: ‘I don’t even know what the navy looks like.’
His only dangerous encounter was when two groups of pirates tried to sell his crew some smuggled oil.
He said the Strait of Hormuz is one of the vital misunderstood regions on Earth with dolphins, sunfish and sea turtles making up a various ecosystem.
‘The great thing about nature is that it will probably thrive through anything,’ he said.
‘A lotus can bloom even within the dirtiest of places, and even the worst-affected regions have their very own beauty. It’s as much as us to search out the sweetness and ignore the noise.’
(Picture: AP)
‘Nature is a really powerful force. As humans, we wish to consider that we’re above nature, but a single act of nature can wipe us out.’
The deepest Bux has been during training is 101 metres down. He said: ‘I’m not an enormous believer in creating too many targets, I’ll go as deep because the ocean will let me.’
The young diver’s only fear is Omani authorities reading this story and blocking him from returning to his beloved spot.
But with the war raging above him, it’s beneath the waves of the highly contested Strait that he feels calm.
‘My family don’t really worry’, he says not even contemplating the risks of the war together with his deal with his diving season.
‘They’ve seen the protection protocols I keep in place and are very supportive.
‘I’m now not the style of person to push for a record or prize, and I only go as deep as I can joyfully.’
He ‘absolutely’ wants the conflict to finish so people can appreciate the great thing about the realm again.
‘Whilst someone completely outside the world of geopolitics, I can see how the stress is affecting everyone. I even have staff within the Philippines who’re struggling.
‘I even have family in India who’re struggling. I actually hope that this tension can end with a resolution that’s suitable for everybody.
Asked his message for world leaders fighting over the stretch of water, he says: ‘We got here from nature and we’ll return to nature. We want to respect the facility of the forces which might be beyond our comprehension.’
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