She is one of the leading athletes on Italy’s national freediving team, a woman with an elegant approach and a sophisticated manner. We met her in her mountain retreat in La Thuile, where Simona Auteri spent a few days recovering after the Italian Championships on Lake Garda, where she won two titles and set two world records.

Simona, things went well on Lake Garda. Was that what you expected?
“I’d say yes. I had planned to reach those depths during my training, though there were a few hiccups. I arrived at Lake Garda ten days before the competition; the first dives went really well, but unfortunately, one morning I woke up with a severe sore throat and cold—I was out of commission. It took me three days of rest to recover. Then, luckily, everything went according to plan. I also won the French Championships, so overall, it’s been a good start to the season”.

What’s coming up next?
“The World Championships in September and finishing my book Between Two Breaths. I'm looking for an agent to publish and promote it. It’s a project that’s really captured me. I enjoy writing; I do it at night before bed and in the morning when I wake up”.

Let’s talk about gear, particularly monofins. Any developments recently? Anything in the works?
“Not that I know of. The monofin is a complex piece of equipment that uses special foot pockets, so developing them requires serious investment. That’s why we don’t see innovations too often. In this field, Cetma is the undisputed leader, followed by products from Molchanov”.

On the world stage, who do you think are the two strongest female athletes and why?
“Alenka Artnik and Alessia Zecchini. I trained with Alenka in Sharm last winter. She’s an incredible athlete, trains a lot. She’s not a kid anymore—born in 1981—so to keep competing at this level against younger women, she follows a strict diet and an amazing training regimen. As for Alessia, there’s not much more to say: she’s a phenomenon, period. I also want to mention a third athlete, Ukraine’s Kateryna Sadurska—84 meters in breaststroke. She’s incredibly strong. She comes from synchronized swimming and finished fourth in her discipline at the Rio Olympics. Her training is insane, on another level from what we freedivers do”.

How do you prepare for major events like the Nationals or Worlds?
“It’s planned a year in advance, starting with setting goals. Then it’s time to get to work. Last season, i changed a few things. I felt the need for a coach, i was feeling a bit lost and needed someone to help balance gym and pool work with sea training, which is what I love most. I chose Julia Mouce; she lives in Bali and has been coaching me for a few months”.

Let’s talk about you. Where do you live, and what do you do when you’re not underwater?
“I’ve moved to Nice; before that, I lived in Genoa. This move began taking shape five years ago. During Covid, I was in London and saw that people were still training in Nice despite the pandemic, it’s a place I’ve always liked. I actually spent a summer there in 2020.
“As for my life out of the water, I’m an architect. I had a firm in the UK and am now converting it for France”.

Your hobbies?
“Between work and freediving, there’s not much time left. But I don’t mind. I love my job, I enjoy cooking, fishing, and hiking in the mountains. I recently started road cycling and want to keep it up. And then there’s the book, which takes up a fair amount of my time”.

Do you do other sports?
“I go to the gym, which is essential for freediving; I’m doing more cycling, and in winter, I enjoy skiing, including cross-country”.

Your favorite dish?
“I think pizza is a delicious and social food. I was recently gifted a pizza oven, and I’m always looking for dough recipes. I’m also pretty good with fish, especially if it’s freshly caught”.

Your favorite underwater spot?
“Dahab, i really love it. And it’s not just the Blue Hole as many people think; nearby there are places where it feels like diving into an aquarium, with so much fish variety”.

And on land?
“At the risk of sounding repetitive, I’ll say Dahab again. That corner of the Red Sea changed my life. It’s a unique, unconventional place; I never would’ve imagined ten years ago that I’d be doing all this: freediving, competing at Worlds, writing a book. It all started in Dahab. The community there is amazing, with people from all over and many sports besides diving”.

Where would you like to live in the future?
“I’m happy in Nice. I want to stay here long-term. I’m living my dream and don’t have other needs”.

Freediving is growing a lot. What does it still need to make that final leap in quality?
“Media visibility, but it’s not easy, it takes a lot of work. If freediving were on TV, everything would change. To make that happen, we need to engage not just with Cmas and Aida but directly with broadcasters, to create a space of our own”.

Regulations: is there anything you’d improve, and why?
“A few months ago, we spoke with the Cmas president. Under pressure from Molchanov, she proposed a major rule change, essentially abolishing the tag and penalties. The idea would be an open line, without fixed depths, allowing athletes to add 3–4% to their personal bests. But that raises a question: what counts as a personal best? Is it the previous competition depth or one declared by the athlete? That’s a big difference. It’s a delicate topic. On one hand, it could boost interest in competitions; on the other, it opens the door to reckless dives, which raises safety and image concerns for the whole sport.
“As for Cmas TV, I don’t agree with it. All competition videos and reels now go exclusively on that platform, and we were told to remove our content from YouTube. But Cmas TV doesn’t yet have the same visibility. As a result, I can’t make reels from our World Championship footage like drone footage, for example. I can’t even post that material on my Instagram page, which was a way to thank my sponsors and engage with followers. I don’t think it’s fair”.