The Mediterranean has not been very kind this time, and it is with great emotion that we learned of the disappearance of this great man whose absence we must now permanently get used to.
The entire team at Nice Premium extends its sincerest condolences to his wife Valérie and his two children, Inès and Noé, who will forever keep the memory of a brave, loyal, and determined man within them.
His website: https://loic.leferme.free.fr/
REACTIONS
Jacques Peyrat (Mayor of Nice): I am dismayed to have learned from the Firefighters at the Tour Rouge station about the death of the young and very likeable diving champion Loïc Leferme.
A native of Nice by adoption, this high-level athlete had pushed the boundaries of free diving with his 2004 record. At 37, Loïc Leferme leaves us with the memory of a man of will and effort: he is an example of self-transcendence. This eternal lover of the sea has forever joined the silent world he so loved.
It is with great sorrow that I extend my most sincere condolences to the family of Loïc Leferme.
Jean Icart (General Councilor): The man “the deepest in the world”, as he liked to define himself, left us silently yesterday.
The world of free diving, that of high-level athletes, that of the associations he worked for (Committee against Respiratory Diseases) — but also all of Nice — mourn him. More than a sport, his practice was a way of life and his new record a collective human adventure that he wished to invite us all to, lovers of nature and self-transcendence. He had even planned to dive on this occasion with the names of all the people who were to support him.
Wishing to provide him with the support he so badly needed, I sought to find backers for him. In the file he presented to me for this purpose, these words, to which his death gives full meaning, were included:
“When I am at the bottom… I wish I could stay in that place where the sun’s rays do not reach… I am in symbiosis with the aquatic world… I feel infinite joy, it is a unique sensation.”
The world of the sea has regained one of its own.
Laurent Merengone (Business Manager): The news of the sudden death of Loic Leferme saddened me! He was an exceptionally kind boy whom I greatly cherished. I had the chance to meet him at charitable events in 2005 where he did not hesitate to get involved. I quickly became friends with him as he was so endearing and passionate about his sport. It is often said that the best people leave earlier than others… that’s the case with Loic.
His passing mourns a family, friends, all the people of Nice, and everyone sensitive to the sporting achievement of a high level that Loic regularly offered us.
Goodbye, my friend, your passion took you, but you will remain in our memories forever.
