Pierre Frolla - From Monaco to South Africa

11/16/2012  Environment

On 11 November, at the Paris Aquarium, the Monegasque free-diver Pierre Frolla dived among 25 sharks to raise public awareness of the threat to this species. A unique challenge, following on from his dives with the "great white" in South Africa …



On 11 November, the Paris Aquarium played host to the four-time free-diving World Champion Pierre Frolla, who made an hour-long dive in a 3-million liter (792,516 US Gallons) pool (the largest in Europe), among 25 large sharks – 16 black tip sharks, four grey sharks, three zebra sharks and two nurse sharks.  This exceptional event, which delighted the spectators and was broadcast on all the national TV news bulletins, brought the temporary exhibition "Long Live Sharks!" to a close.  This exhibition had been open for three months at the Paris Aquarium.  Its aim was to raise awareness of the importance of protecting sharks, hundreds of millions of which are killed each year.

Pierre has been traveling around the world all year to meet the most endangered marine species.  Through video documentaries, by taking part in major events in France and all over the world and via his Monaco-based "Ecole Bleue" (Blue School") he is informing the general public, particularly children, of the fragility of the environment and working with them to seek solutions to the problems encountered.

Pierre Frolla and sharks have a special history …  Born in 1975, he was part of the generation of children that was traumatized by Spielberg's "Jaws."  A few years ago, to overcome his fear, this exceptional free-diver decided to explore the seabed, in particular the seabeds in South Africa, among the great white sharks.  Not only was this a personal challenge, but the fabulous images from this incredible adventure moved the entire world and have helped to change the dreadful image of sharks that was created by a film and a large dose of ignorance.


Photos:  Copyright Pierre Frolla
http://www.pierrefrolla.com/

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