Teak Sea Records 2017

Overview 2017

2017 was a year rich in records and remarkable catches with 9 exceptional fish, including three for the only Vaggelis Kalevras which after his unexpected record of Mediterranean snapper in 2016 confirmed his talent. Moreover, each of the three Vaggelis record catches exceeds the current IUSA world records by 30% and more!

Note also a remarkable catch by a customary, Christian Patrimonio, a 800g red mullet caught around Île d’Yeu in France. This fish has no IGFA record or IUSA record, so it could not be accepted as a record in the same way as the other species but is nonetheless a magnificent (and succulent) specimen.

2017 was a balanced year with catches from the tropics and records of important species finally realized, such as green jobfish, spanish mackerel or yellowfin tuna, and Mediterranean, with incredible catches of the now legendary Vaggelis Kalevras.

It is also remarkable that all the records were taken with different Teak sea models, Beam, Pal, IKAN, Hyperion, X, and for the first time thanks to Jean-paul Lorenzi, a TEAK SEA rollergun – a prototype of the Beam 85 Neutron that will be launched commercially this year-, as well as an X90 with reverse mechanism. Note that the latter speargun was the price of Vaggelis Kalevras for its 2016 snapper. This illustrates the merits of offering a wide speargun range that allows each spearo to find the weapon that suits his playground and favorite fishing techniques….

Finally, I also captured an eligible record fish, a blackfin barracuda of 12.4kg. The IGFA record is 13.4 and the IUSA record is 16.4. The capture was filmed, which was very useful to check that it was this variety of barracuda, not so common in Indonesian waters. Do the same!!!

Prize and draw rights

In accordance with the formal regulations on the Teak Sea site for the 2017 season, with 7 valid records (mine is not in the draw) filed two spearguns were in play this year (2 spearguns for more than 6 deposits).

For the first time, additional draw rights were also awarded according to three criteria:

Previous record beaten:

Jean-Paul Lorenzi (European sea bass)
Vaggelis Kalevras (Mediterranean dentex snapper)

Detailed narrative

Loïc Dinh
Patrick Delonca

Video shot

Guillaume Froment

The allocated rights are summarized in the table below:

Draw

The draw for the 2017 Teak Sea Records was held Sunday, May 6, 2018 by an innocent hand.

The result of the draw is:

Loic Dinh (drawn twice), finally rewarded
Vaggelis Kalevras, rewarded again and well deserved

A few lines for the winners:

Vaggelis Kalevras, the Kavala hunter, will have had a staggering 2017 year. His three catches are well larger than the existing IUSA records. Vaggelis is not only an excellent freediver who can hunt below 50m, but also a very fine prospector who knows his fishing grounds on the fingertips, allowing him to fully exploit their potential.

Loic Dinh, already holding a Teak Sea record, has given us a remarkable Green Jobfish in Vanuatu, where he lives …. The story of his capture was published by Teak Sea in the April newsletter. Here too, his knowledge of the area and fish passages was key.

The case of Vaggelis and Loïc show that it is not only a question of luck! The record ? A combination of physical performance, regularity, knowledge of the sea and fish and … the right speargun of course!

Arm yourself with passion and see you next year!

Angelos Germidis