Less than two years after going into convulsions during a similar attempt, magician David Blaine broke the previous world record for breath-holding after resisting under water for 17 minutes and 4 seconds, live on The Oprah Winfrey Show on Wednesday.

Known for his risky illusions and various endurance acts, the Brooklyn-born magician spend over 17 minutes in a water-filled sphere before being pulled out by divers.

The 35-year-old, who spent 44 days suspended from a glass box by the Thames and was buried alive for a week in a see-through coffin in New York, looked relaxed as he said he had achieved a "lifelong dream" referring to setting the new record. The previous one was 16 minutes and 32 seconds, set earlier this year by Switzerland's Peter Colat, according to Guinness World Records.

In order to flush carbon dioxide from his blood, Blaine inhaled pure oxygen for over 20 minutes before diving in the "human aquarium" that was 8 feet in diameter.

In preparation for his stunt, Blaine said he trained in the Cayman Islands, where he recorded two video blogs describing his training. In one clip, the magician shows details of his training regimen, including the nights he's slept in a special hypoxic tent, which is filled with lower than normal levels of oxygen.

"I've been sleeping here for a month – and I was just in Cayman where I've been training on holding my breath. And I've been getting pretty good, so my times have been getting much better," he was quoted by People as saying.

This is the first of two stunts Blaine is reportedly planning to perform this year.

The other will involve him trying to break the world record for sleep deprivation. Briton Tony Wright stayed awake for 11,5 days, but Guinness World Records refused to list the feat, because of the "grave risk" to his mental health.