When British scuba diver, Wallace Raymond Woolley, 96, dove to a depth of 140ft/42 m in 2019 on the SS Zenobia wreck in Larnaca, Cyprus, he thought he would hold the Guinness World Record for the oldest scuba diver for quite a while.
But that was not to be, as Bill Lambert from Rockport, Illinois recently broke that Guinness World Record for the oldest person to scuba dive. The 100-year-old claimed the record after completing a 27-minute dive to a depth of 40ft/12m, at a local lake in the US state of Illinois.
To accomplish this feat, the diver must remain underwater for 20 minutes. Although Woolley did dive to 140 feet, Lambert had more underwater time. Lambert says that his next goal is to remain in shape so that, at 101, he can break the record again. In Mexico, he originally broke the world record when he was 98, but this was not entered in the Guinness World Records.
Woolley took up diving at age 98. His daughter Deb Steinfeld thinks he is amazing guy!
Lambert’s family supported this important event in Wooley’s life and travelled to see him break the record. His family said the past few years have been a wild ride!