Performer David Blaine was pulled from an aquarium in New York by divers 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 eight minutes, 58 seconds for holding one's breath underwater. The stunt, following a week-long 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 minutes.
After being given oxygen, Blaine addressed the large crowd that had gathered around the eight-foot globe-like tank on the plaza of Lincoln Centre for the Performing Arts in Manhattan.
"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."
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.
Agencies