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Underwater Orienteering

Underwater orienteering is a CMAS underwater sport in which divers use compass, distance measuring and buoy to complete an underwater course as precisely and quickly as possible. Surfacing, course deviation and safety rules define the sport.

LevelMain sport FamilyAquatics Family CategoryWater sport / underwater navigation

AI-generated illustration: Underwater Orienteering — AI-generated illustration

Classification

Category Water sport / underwater navigation

Family Aquatics Family

Level Main sport

Getting started

Kurzbeschreibung Underwater navigation sport with compass, distance measuring, course buoys and time/precision scoring.

Geeignet für Suitable for confident divers who want navigation, course discipline and competition underwater.

Cost Not a direct entry: first diving certification, buoyancy and supervised navigation training. Dive club, equipment, breathing gas, special devices, course fees, competition/travel costs. CMAS/VDST-adjacent underwater sports club or dive club with orientation training. Only with diving qualification, buddy/surface safety and local safety plan.

First progress Compass and distance feel improve after several supervised navigation sessions.

Fitness level medium to high

Was du brauchst

diving certification
scuba equipment
fins/monofin
compass
distance meter
buoy
buddy/supervision

First steps

gain diving qualification
stabilise buoyancy
train compass navigation
find a specialist course
practise short courses under supervision

CMAS/VDST-adjacent dive club, underwater sports club or underwater-orienteering course.

Observe gas management, buddy/surface safety, visibility, temperature, course clearance and abort rules strictly.

Weitere Angaben

Tags individual, water, animal, orientierungstauchen, water-sport, underwater-orienteering, aquatics-familie, wassersport-unterwasser-navigation

Rules and format

Die Grundlagen

Ziel

Complete an underwater course precisely, quickly and legally with navigation equipment.

Teilnehmer

Individual, pair or team depending on discipline.

Teamgröße

individual to four-person team.

Spielfeld

CMAS underwater-orienteering course.

Dauer

Depends on format and event.

Wertung

Time, control sequence, finish deviation and rule validity.

Gewinnbedingung

Best valid time, placing or score in the announced format.

Ausrüstung

scuba equipment
compass
distance meter
fins/monofin
buoy

Wichtige Regelpunkte

surfacing
missing a control
missing the finish gate
safety breach

Regelquellen

Federations and sources

Federations

CMAS
CMAS - World Underwater Federation (CMAS)

How to / Regulations CMAS · rulebook · high
About Orienteering CMAS Archives · official · high
Fun Facts CMAS · sport-guide · high
Orientation CMAS Swiss Diving · course-guide · medium