Tech-Diving 2000

Olivier Isler

Nationality: Swiss
Born: January 31, 1950.
Occupation: Teaching Natural Sciences in a Secondary school.
Life philosophy: Try to realize some childhood dreams and achieve them with fresh ideas.
Passion: Diving in extreme environments. Because of this point of view, technological and human challenge in cave diving was more important than a scientific study of underwater caves.
First dives: 1971
First explorations: in Switzerland 1973.

Since 1978, explorations in France, Italy, Sardegna, Slovenia and Lanzarote (Canary Islands, worlds longest underwater lava-tube). Major achievements in Italy (Cogol dei Veci) and France (Ressei, Doux-de-Coly and Gourneyras) were realized with RI 2000, the first rebreather (semi-closed) conceived for cave diving exploration. This apparatus was built with collaboration of French engineer Alain Ronjat.

Other inventions or adaptions: self pilot small air-bell-decompression chamber (used inside of sump), twin DPV system, urinate system etc.

• Cave diving