Blaine defies death again
 

It´s quite an achievment holding ones breath for more than seven minutes... Wonder what would have happened if the guys failed retracting him in time.......... Hmmmm.

I thought CNN's article was more thorough.

NEW YORK (AP) -- Stunt artist David Blaine was pulled from an aquarium by divers Monday nearly two minutes short of his goal of setting a world record for holding his breath underwater.

Blaine was trying to free himself from chains and handcuffs while bidding to break the record of 8 minutes, 58 seconds for holding one's breath underwater. The stunt, following a weeklong endurance challenge underwater, was televised live by ABC.

With Blaine's face contorted in pain and bubbles rising to the surface, divers went in to release him from the chains and pull him out. Blaine held his breath for 7:08.

After being given oxygen, Blaine addressed the large crowd that had gathered around the 8-foot snow globe-like tank on the plaza of Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts.

"I am humbled so much by the support of everyone from New York City and from all over the world," Blaine said. "This was a very difficult week, but you all made it fly by with your strong support and your energy. Thank you so much, everybody. ... I love you all."

After a 100-minute television preamble that showed his training techniques -- including holding his breath in a tank of sharks -- Blaine had sucked in his last breath before going under. Kirk Krack, his trainer and a diving expert, offered encouragement as Blaine remained nearly still for the first five minutes of his dive.

Then, methodically, he removed two of his handcuffs and was trying to remove chains that held him before the divers came in to save him.

ABC was hoping that curiosity over his stunt would attract viewers during a ratings sweeps month.

Dr. Murat Gunel, who heads Blaine's medical team and is an associate professor of neurosurgery at Yale University School of Medicine, said before the attempt: "He is pushing his body insanely to the limits."

Gunel and other medical experts had been monitoring Blaine's condition 24 hours a day from an adjacent tent filled with medical equipment and machines.

Gunel said the challenge had taken a toll on the magician's body, including liver damage, the sensation of pins and needles in his feet and hands, some loss of sensation elsewhere, and rashes all over his body, which glistened pale white in the tank.

On Sunday, Blaine, 33, wearing a diver's helmet with a two-way communication system, told AP Television News he would "give it my best shot" to complete the feat despite peeling skin, sharp pains in his joints and a severe earache.

Blaine started training in December, with some help from Navy SEALS. He lost 50 pounds so his body would require less oxygen.

As early as the second day of his challenge, Gunel said, there was evidence that Blaine was suffering liver failure; the medical team consulted with medical experts at NASA before stabilizing his condition. Blaine's underwater environment was similar to the weightlessness experienced by astronauts in outer space, he said.

"I told him he needed to get out of the water, and he refused me," Gunel said. "He said he did not want to let the people down."

The doctor said Blaine had agreed to allow researchers at Yale to examine him after the stunt to see what they can learn about how the body responds to an underwater environment.

Source

Poor David appeared to be in or on the verge of Liver Failure, and his skin was peeling off of his body.

Its a shame he didn't make his mark, but after a week submerged underwater who could blame him?

Still though, he is an amazing illusionist.

I fully believe his years of devotion as a Sufi have everything to do with the amazing feats of will he is able to undertake.

you know what the best part was?

your signature.

and the visual i get.

I have nothing but the utmost respect for that man. We kept flipping over to the coverage last night, and I have to admit, I was a little misty that after all his preparation, he missed the mark by so little.

I have truly never seen a human being turn blue without the aid of make-up. That was intense.

And E.P.S., your signature is very - interesting. ;>

~Lisa

Blaine defies death again!
Still no sign of that cure for cancer, then?

Illusionist? like the delightful "filmed on the street apart from the bit I faked in a studio" levitation?

Sure, he performs impressive feats of physical endurance, but the man's no illusionist or magician, he is devioid of charisma and his stunts lack any sense of intrigue.

"He's spending a week underwater", best crack open the Lunesta, I doubt I'll be able to sleep for all the excitement and worry.

I'd almost have some respect for the man, some sense of pride in what he does and a desire to buy the man a beer were it not for the grotesque media sensationalism he promotes around his stunts.

Who cares if he does or doesn't make it... it is supposed to be entertainment. Where's the entertainment in watching a man sat in a fish bowl for a week? It is the same kind of hollow programming that has people watching late night Big Brother to see a bunch of strangers sleeping.

The man needs to find a proper day job.

I wish he'd go back to doing street performances.

That's one of the things I originally loved about the man. I'd never seen people do the kinds of tricks he did.

I can honestly say that, although I don't enjoy his performance stunts, the boi had heart to try to go through with the tank performance. He tried so hard not to give in, his body convulsing, trying to breathe while he struggled not to.


edit: Er, what's a Sufi?

A Sufi is a Muslim Mystic, to put it in general terms.

Sufi's throughout history have been known to be able to do AMAZING things with their bodies and minds, including learning how to stop their own hearts.

Truly incredible stuff.

That's cool to know!

Wow. He's a brave man.