( CNN ) -- For most people plunging into the ocean 's cold , dark depths without an oxygen tank would be an alarming experience . But for Ahmad Tahilmet and his friends its one of life 's greatest pleasures . They are freedivers -- one of the growing number of young Emiratis who pursue the extreme water sport that is growing in popularity . Unlike regular divers , freedivers prefer to go under water without oxygen tanks or other bulky equipment . `` It has something to do with the ocean and how much we love to be in it . You have so many ways to discover what 's under the water , '' says Tahilmet . `` Some people go into scuba diving . Freedivers usually have a different approach because the silence . `` You have no bubbles , nothing . All that you can hear is your heartbeat and you get to see things that other people ca n't see . You know because you are so quiet and calm . '' Freedivers sip coffee with sharks . For these young Emiratis , freediving is not just a hobby , but it 's a competitive sport . But unlike other forms of competition , freediving requires participants to learn to relax , instead of relying on adrenaline . Freediving has a long history in the UAE , going back to the old days of pearl diving , a one-time traditional livelihood . Driven by the need to make the living , the pearl divers relied on a weight to drag them to the seabed and a rope to guide them out of water . But as that profession has disappeared , the practice of freediving has taken its place . `` I know it is not a necessity , '' says Tahilmet . `` Now we do it because we love the ocean . '' Freedivers compete for either depth or duration of a breath hold under water . And just like his pearl-diving Emirati forebears , present-day free divers such as Ahmed Khouri may opt to use weights to help them drop faster and deeper . `` Personally I prefer to dive with a neck weight , '' Khouri says . `` It just sits around the neck . It 's comfortable because it does n't really choke you . So you 'll be alright . '' See : 8 wild outdoor adventures in Dubai . Yet , experts warn that many freedivers , including those in the UAE , do n't have enough proper training or understand its dangers . And they warn accidents could rise as more people take part in the sport . Adel Ait-Ghezala , a 35-year-old Algerian freediver , went missing on New Year 's Day while spearfishing with his friends off the coast of Dubai . His body was found around 10 days later . Both Tahilmet and Khouri are well aware of the dangers ; they lost a friend to freediving , also off the coast of Dubai . But AIDA , the international freediving governing body , says the sport has a strong safety record , and serious accidents in organized competitions , like the recent one late last year , are quite rare . ( In November , champion American freediver Nicholas Mevoli died after he surfaced from a 72-meter dive in a competitive event in the Bahamas . ) For Khouri , the thrill of freediving is like doing another kind of extreme sport . `` The most fun part of the dive is the free fall , '' he says . `` It 's like people who do skydiving , they just freefalling . It 's just the same . You know I think that 's the best sensation you can have because the more you free fall , the deeper you go , the more fun you have . '' See : Will the world be wowed by Dubai 's futuristic souk built for Expo 2020 ?
A growing number of young Emiratis pursue freediving . Freediving has a long history in the UAE , going back to the old days of pearl diving . Experts warn death rates could rise as more people take part in the extreme water sport .