On the 3rd November 2002 a new WORLD RECORD ATTEMPT will be made at Bass Lake, Henley On Klip, Gauteng , South Africa at setting an official Guinness World Record for the greatest number of scuba divers underwater at one time.

Bass Lake incorporates a lake with a surface area of 10 hectares, which is filled with ground water and is of drinking quality. The venue is world renowned as a scuba diving training venue and is the second largest dive site in Southern Africa. The facility is considered by the top certifying agencies (PADI, NAUI, SSI, CMAS, IANTD) to be the best inland scuba-training venue in the country. Around 30 000-scuba divers obtain their certifications or do advanced training at Bass Lake every year. Due to its popularity, safety standards, experienced staff and infrastructure Bass Lake is ideally placed to get the right volume of people to achieve this record attempt.

This event will be the first attempted inland and at altitude in Southern Africa. Our goal is to get 2002 people underwater at one time. The current record is 592 divers underwater, which was held at Vetchies Pier in Natal, at sea level. We will be working closely with all interested dive schools, equipment importers and certifying agencies to achieve our goal. Bass Lake will further ensure that this "first of its kind", major scuba event in South Africa will be a huge success. All scuba diver enthusiasts and industry players will have an opportunity to celebrate this sport and bring a lot of media attention to scuba diving. Exhibits will be set up of various scuba diving related equipment and services. After the event interesting demonstrations will take place.

Spectators are welcome to attend. Bass Lake has excellent viewing points around the lake for spectators and direct access to the water for the divers. The event will be open to all registered divers. The event will open on 3 November at 6.00 a.m. and close at 10.00 p.m. that night. Participants will be pre-registered and will be required to notify officials of their attendance before 10.00 a.m. of the day. Fun activities will continue throughout the day and evening.

Any queries can please be directed to:

E-mail: [email protected]

Telephone: South Africa (016) 3661127/8 ( 8.00 a.m. - 5.00 p.m. )

Fax: (016) 3660133