The underwater world.
Within reach.

Pavel Kopecký

SSI Divemaster #112506

From shop assistant to school. Equipment, equipment hire and shared dives in Czech waters and abroad.

Pavel started working for Divers Direct in 2020 as a shop assistant in our second shop in Čestlice, where he helped with sales at weekends. Over time, however, he began to realise that he could find a role at Divers Direct in other ways than in the small shop in Čestlice, so in 2022 he enrolled on the OWD course. The course took place in the Canary Islands in Spain, where he successfully completed it.He then returned to the Czech Republic, where an amazing new opportunity awaited him. They were looking for experienced shop assistants at the main shop in Dejvice. Pavel did not hesitate and went to ask whether he could work as a sales assistant in the large store. And Pavel managed to move from the small but cosy pond to the large lake full of diving equipment. During that time he visited Czech quarries and discovered that he also liked the beauty of Czech waters.

Time passed and our diving school grew, so one day Pavel (BAMBI) moved from selling diving equipment to the diving school. His main task was to run Equipment hire, but he also had to learn many new things, such as maintaining diving equipment. During his time there, Pavel completed many dives both in Czech quarries and in Egypt on a trip to the diving mecca Dahab, where he experienced his most amazing dive so far and also his deepest dive at the Blue Hole site. During these dives he also completed many specialisations and is now improving as a professional Dive Guide.

Niky Hlavatá

SSI Divemaster #111315

Cold waters, macro photography and ecology. She helps protect the world we discover on our dives.

Since childhood, on every holiday she spent 90% of her time underwater. All it took to make her happy was to dive on breath-hold and pick up a little shell for fun. Time went on and that was no longer enough for Niky. Her father introduced her to diving in 2016, and so her diving adventures began. In 2017 she expanded her specialisations with AOWD, and since then she has continued to move forward. To feel comfortable and safe underwater in any situation, her package was extended to include Diver Stress and Rescue with first aid, and in 2023 she successfully joined the diving professionals as a divemaster.

To extend her diving season, she also took the path of drysuit diving. She likes discovering all types of waters, and her current biggest attraction is the cold waters of the north. She has a great interest in taking macro photographs underwater and collecting rubbish that does not belong in seas and oceans. She enjoys talking to people about ecology and explaining why it is so important not to destroy the marine environment that nature has given us and which is so vital for our existence on this planet.“Diving is my passion, I love nothing more than being underwater and feeling completely free and merging with the aquatic ecosystem. Diving gives me daily meaning and the desire to want more”, she adds.

Věrka Nigrovičová

SSI Divemaster #119563

A lover of Czech quarries. She supports beginner divers as well as instructors on courses and trips.

Although she got into diving 11 years ago in exotic Saudi Arabia, Věrka is an enthusiastic lover of Czech quarries with their interesting fauna and flora and also enjoys Try scuba diving sessions with enthusiasts. Simply put, neutral buoyancy and weightlessness are the real relaxation, peace and reset for her, which she seeks between shifts in the hospital.

Perhaps it is her profession as a nurse that helps her empathise with beginner divers, and so she gladly helps and very much enjoys Divers Direct trips and events, where as a Divemaster she always tries to be of assistance to new divers and instructors who are currently teaching courses.

Tomáš Horčička

SSI Freediving Instructor #114148

From apparatus to breath-hold. Try scuba diving, Basic Freediving and technique training.

ABC winter special 87 entitled On the Treasures of the Oceans. It was there that a lifelong love of water and everything connected with it began. At the age of nine he built his first diving apparatus himself. It was only for three breaths – and today he knows it was dangerous to life – but back then? Three breaths underwater were simply brilliant for a little boy. Years and years of snorkelling and working as a lifeguard followed. Life, however, took a slightly different path and Tom did not get into real diving until 2015. A forgotten passion flared up again and since then he has devoted himself fully to diving – in the pool, at quarries and in the sea. Simply into the water whenever and wherever possible.

Over time, the desire to share the joy of diving with others grew in him, and so in 2021 he became a scuba diving instructor. One of Divers Direct's regular training sessions was attended by a freediving instructor so that, as scuba divers, we could try freediving on a single breath. And another door to the underwater world opened. This was followed by years combining scuba diving and freediving. On the first freediving dive below 20 metres, using free-fall technique, it was clear: this is the right path. Tom is a newcomer to our team in the role of freediving instructor. He focuses on Try scuba diving and Basic Freediving courses.

You can meet him at rescue technique workshops, equalisation training for those who have ear problems, other specialist lessons and free training sessions. His motto is: "More than 60% of the human body is water – so it is clear that we belong more in the water than on land."

Lars Nielsen

SSI Freediving Instructor

Danish instructor who speaks Czech. Try Freediving, Basic, Level 1 and training for freedivers.

Lars is our freediving instructor from Denmark, who has been living in Prague since 2011 and speaks excellent Czech. He has 5+2 children and therefore saintly patience. He worked in management and HR for a long time, and now he is fully dedicated to freediving. He is an SSI Level 1 instructor. He dives to depths of around 30 metres, has rescue dives trained to 20 metres and can hold his breath for 3:15 minutes in static, just so you have an idea of what sort of bloke he is.

For many years Lars taught gymnastics, ocean swimming in a triathlon club, and he also works with children’s swimming. In general, he very much enjoys water. He is constantly developing his skills in and out of the water, and for years he has been dedicated to safe breath-hold diving to depth and underwater swimming.

He combines his experience from freediving and everyday life. "Thanks to it I am happier with myself, and I believe I can pass that on to others," says Lars about himself. At our school Lars runs Basic Freediving and Level 1 courses, as well as Try Freediving taster lessons and training sessions for certified freedivers.

Petr Vaculík

Divemaster

Czech quarries, Indonesia and relaxed dives. You can meet him at the quarry on Try scuba diving sessions. #relaxeddive

He first tried diving on holiday in Indonesia, and it was then clear that the underwater world would not let him go. But it truly captivated him only with the OWD course – which brought with it huge luck in the form of a great instructor and a group of people around him, with whom everything then went on by itself. Specks, stress, and above all lots of fun.

He likes Czech quarries, but regularly returns to Indonesia – that was where his love of diving began long ago. Likewise, he enjoys the sea, the ocean and drift diving.

You can meet him at the quarry on Try scuba diving sessions.

For him, diving is above all relaxation – switching off the mind and pure freedom and calm beneath the surface. He enjoys it most when he sees a smile on his buddy’s face, whether it is a complete beginner or an experienced old hand. That is why he also likes to say: #relaxeddive