The Last Thing the Judges See!

The outcome of a diving meet is determined by the diving judges. The scores they give for each dive directly affects the final scores and places.

The goal of the diver should be to perform each of their dives in such a way that the judges will reward them with high scores. This is NOT POSSIBLE if a diver gets sloppy or lazy at the end of the dive. I firmly believe that the last thing a diving judge sees on each dive he or she judges leaves an overall impression (good or bad) about that dive. Let's say a diver jumps high, spins fast, is good distance from the board and enters the water vertically but loses their feet on the entry (feet come apart) -- it is my opinion and experience that the judges will not reward that dive as well as they should because they formed an overall negative opinion of the dive simply because the diver's feet came apart on the entry. The judge starts thinking that there must have been other things wrong with the dive as well. The same could be said for similar dives as mentioned above that go in the water with flat feet, or a slight twist or a bad entry. Everything about the dive is good EXCEPT for the last thing the judges see.

Coaches need to constantly reinforce (and divers need to be constantly reminded) that the dive is NOT OVER UNTIL THE TOES DISAPPEAR UNDERNEATH THE WATER. The diver must be taught to maintain GOOD FORM (legs straight, feet together, toes pointed) for the entire duration of the dive and they must try to enter the water with as little splash as possible each and every time they do a dive.

These little things that separate "good" divers from "not-so-good" divers do not occur accidentally -- they must be practiced and perfected over time.

DONJOY or TIGERPAW?

Many divers today use wrist grips while diving to help reduce the constant pounding on their wrists that comes from platform diving and to a certain extent springboard diving. There are two types of wrist grips on the market today that are designed for this purpose. They are the Donjoy Wristwraps and the Tiger Paw Wrist Supports. The kind you choose is a personal preference. I have found that the divers who like the Donjoy Grips do NOT like the Tiger Paws and vice-versa. The pair you choose depends on how much and what kind of wrist support that you need.

The Donjoy Wristwraps are made of a black neoprene materials that wraps around your wrists only and is tightened and secured by two Velcro straps that go in the opposite direction of each other. Some divers like these because they are less bulky than the Tiger Paws and can be tightened more easily too. The Tiger Paw Wrist supports are made of a waterproof pack cloth material and the not only cover the wrist, but wrap around the thumb as well. They place more padding on the back of your hand and some divers like this extra cushion especially if your arms collapse on a tower entry and the back of your hands smash into the top of your head -- OUCH!!

The best suggestion is to find a teammate or a friend at a diving meet who wears wrist grips and try them on for a few dives. You may even want to have your coach "spot" you on a handstand on the ground to see which style you like best. Whichever pair you choose, make sure that you break them in and get used to them by first wearing your wrist grips for a few springboard practice before going up to dive tower. Also, be sure to put your name on the grips in indelible ink so your grips do not "disappear" on pool deck during practice or a meet.

Olympic Trials Begin Today!

The road to Beijing and the 2008 Summer Olympics begins today for the top springboard and platform divers in the United States. The Olympic Diving Trials begin today at the I.U.P.U.I. Natatorium in Indianapolis, IN.

For more information about the Olympic Diving Trials, check these websites:
www.usadiving.com
www.diving.about.com
www.indianasportscorp.com

Be sure to check back here for behind the scenes stories, happenings and tidbits live from the Trials.

LET'S DIVE!

Check Your Depth!!

Certainly, the depth of the water underneath, in front of and to the sides of a diving board is an important safety consideration and hopefully you as a coach teach your divers to always check the depth of any water prior to diving in head first -- especially at new or unfamiliar pools.

With the start of the summer diving season upon us, take a moment to remind your divers again to do this. WHY? Because often times, the diving "well" or "hopper" at summer pools is not as big and not as deep as the pools where your divers train year round. There is a BIG difference between 12 feet of water and 10 feet of water. There is a BIG difference between 17 feet of water and 13 feet of water -- the bottom comes up quickly!!

If your diver is used to practicing in a pool that is 13 feet deep and then they go to their summer swim club where the pool is only 11 feet deep -- they need to be aware of that and they need to make adjustments when they enter the water. Similarly, if your divers go to a diving camp this summer where the water is 17 feet deep and then they come back to your regular practice pool where the water is a very safe 13 feet deep -- your divers must still be VERY CAREFUL until they re-adjust their bearings and get used to the different water depth.

Diving is a VERY SAFE SPORT under supervised conditions and by using a little common sense. Let' s make sure we all enjoy a SAFE summer of diving!!

Practice Under Meet Conditions!

Often times, I will see a diver during practice who will balk, break position or otherwise give-up on a dive because of a bad hurdle, takeoff or any number of other situations that always seem to crop up. The coach will remind the diver that if they do that in a meet, they will probably receive lower scores from the judges or in the case of a balk, have a scoring penalty imposed. The diver usually shrugs and says" I won't do that in a meet!"

I DISAGREE!!

It has been my experience that a diver does in a meet, what they do in practice. This is why you practice!! Teach your divers that they need to "practice under meet conditions." They need to be able to do all of their dives without balking or breaking position. They need to be able to do all of their dives with any hurdle or any takeoff and they need to be able to do all of their dives without regard to any other adverse conditions such as cold water or air temperature, early morning events, rain, wind, bright sunlight, bad equipment, etc.

discipline, Discipline, DISCIPLINE!!

This all goes back to teaching your divers HOW to dive and not just teaching them dives.

FINISH THE DIVE!!

This week, I had the opportunity and privilege to judge at the 2008 FINA Grand Prix International Diving Championships at the Hall of Fame Aquatic Center in Fort Lauderdale, FL. During the first of our daily judges' meetings, we discussed a number of things about the events from the previous day. One such topic that we discussed I felt was very relevant to diving at all levels from beginner to international elite and that topic was how some divers did very good dives but they did not FINISH them well and therefore the scores from the judges were not as high as they could have been.

WHAT IS THE LESSON?

The best divers know how to finish their dives.

REMEMBER: The dive is not over until your toes have disappeared underneath the water. Make sure your divers are taught and learn to stay TIGHT with legs straight, feet together and toes pointed all the way through the entry. The extra half point or point they could receive from the judges could make a huge difference in the final results -- it sure did at the FINA Meet!

2008 FINA Grand Prix Meet!

If you are in the Fort Lauderdale, FL area this week, be sure to stop by the Hall of Fame Aquatic Center located at the International Swimming Hall of Fame and Hall for the 2008 AT&T USA DIVING F.I.N.A. Grand Prix. This international diving competition will feature the best divers in the world in one of the last major competitions before the Summer Olympic Games in Beijing, China. Click here for a schedule of events.

While there, be sure to stop by the Springboards and More Booth (located on the 3M side of the pool) where you will find all kinds of diving related equipment, supplies and novelty items sure to please any diving enthusiast in your family.

The Springboards and More Booth will be open Wednesday May 7 - Saturday May 10 from 9:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m. We hope to see you there!!

Diving Coach Research Project

Springboards and More is researching and compiling a listing of all the awards and honors that have been won by diving coaches over the past 100 years. We plan to upload all of this information to a website that will be available soon. The website will be a constantly growing database as we collect more and more information.

Not only are we compiling listings of the major diving coach award winners, but we are also looking to compile NCAA Coach of the Year Winners, US Diving Coaching honors, College Conference "Coach of the Year" winners, as well as High School and Geographic area diving coach award winners.

If you would like to assist in this project, please send a note to springboardsandmore@cinci.rr.com or if you have any awards or honors you would like to see added to our compilation, please send that information as well.

We appreciate your efforts towards this project and we hope that this new website will be a source of inspiration to future diving coaches and help to keep our sport moving forward!

FUNdamentals, FUNdamentals, FUNdamentals

Now that the summer diving season is right around the corner, I thought it would be a good time to remind all coaches -- especially first-time coaches about the importance of teaching FUNDAMENTALS to your divers.

The biggest "coaching" mistake I see from young and inexperienced coaches, is trying to teach young divers "hard" dives when they cannot do the "easy" fundamentals of our sport. I am talking about "GOOD FORM" -- that is legs straight, feet together, toes pointed -- and VERTICAL entry with little or no splash. It makes no sense to teach a young diver difficult dives if they cannot keep their feet together on an easy dive. In the same way, it makes no sense to have a young diver do a front double somersault and land in the water like a bowling ball when that same diver could do a Front 1 1/2 S.S. and go straight in the water -- these are COACHING ERRORS that simply will not score well from the judges. Keep in mind that higher judges' scores almost always beats higher DD (Degree of Difficulty). It is almost always better to do an easier dive well than to do a hard dive poorly.

Make a habit of spending the first 10-15 minutes of your summer league practice (every day) teaching divers "Good Form" and teaching them how to enter the water as close to vertical as possible. Make a game or a competition out of it to keep the kids interested and to trick them into learning the "boring" stuff that will pay big dividends in the long run.

Please Stand!

A diving coach is, in reality, a teacher. The job of a teacher is to help, encourage and assist your students to learn the subject matter that you are presenting. In this case, your subject matter is the sport of diving. As a person who teaches diving, you need to find the best way possible to reach the students in your classroom (the pool).

There is, in my humble opinion, no right or wrong way to teach diving (safety excluded) -- every diving teacher is different and every diving teacher has his or her own methods to get the lesson across to the students (divers). Experience has shown me that a student is more apt to learn in an environment where the teacher is enthusiastic about the subject matter being presented and I feel strongly that a diving teacher who STANDS during practice has a much better chance of displaying that enthusiasm to his or her students (divers). A coach who stands can be more animated and can better demonstrate techniques; can walk over to the diver for some one on one discussion; can jump up and down to celebrate the learning of a new dive or to show dismay at a diver who repeats the same mistake again. In essence, a coach who stands can bring some energy to the classroom (pool) and this can really benefit the students (divers).

Think back to your school days and recall how boring it was to be in a class where the teacher just sat at their desk and read notes for you to copy in your notebook. Now recall those classes where the teacher was a bundle of energy and you could not wait to get in there and learn! NOW GET OUT OF YOUR CHAIR AND START COACHING!!

Iron Mike Memorial Fund

As most of you know, MIKE LYDEN -- one of the finest diving coaches in the United States lost his battle with cancer on Friday April 11, 2008. A memorial fund has been set up by Wildcat Aquatics, a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, and 100% of all donations will directly benefit Mike's wife Emily and his three children Jessica, Jack and Brittany.

We have a chance to double our donations to honor the memory of our friend and colleague. A generous donor has offered to match funds up to $10,000.00 submitted by the diving community. In order to have your donation matched, please send your check made payable to "Wildcats Aquatics - Iron Mike Memorial" and send to Springboards and More. They will coordinate the gift with the matching donor.

Make checks payable to "Wildcats Aquatics - Iron Mike Memorial"

Mail to
"Iron Mike" Foundation
c/o Springboards and More
P.O. Box 268
Milford, OH 45150
USA

Just A Half Point More!!

Ask yourself this question after your next diving meet: “What could I have done better on each dive to get just one half point more from the judges?”

In a typical 11-dive high school dive list (5 Voluntary Dives and 6 Optional Dives that includes 105C, 203C, 303C, 403C, 5132D and 5223D) your total score would INCREASE by nearly 30 POINTS if you took every score you received from each judge and added ½ point to it before re-calculating your score.

EXERCISE: Pull out your most recent diving sheet and re-calculate your final total after increasing every judges' award by one half point. (Example: If you received scores of 5.5 , 5.5, 6.0, 6.0, 6.0 on your first dive -- change those scores to 6.0, 6.0, 6.5, 6.5, 6.5 and recalculate the point total). Repeat this for all eleven dives and then see where you would have ended up in the final rankings had this been your score!

THIRTY POINTS – that is almost one whole dive!! That is like getting to do 12 dives in an 11-dive meet – on which end do you rather be?

A Good "Hobie-ism"

Legendary Diving Coach HOBIE BILLINGSLEY was often heard to tell a diver "Don't let the water dictate your direction upon entry." In a nutshell, this means that a diver should maintain a tight straight-line body position throughout the completion of the entry. The dive is NOT over until your toenails disappear underneath the water.

If a diver does not maintain a tight body when they enter the water, the water might force them to move in a certain direction that makes the dive appear to go short, over or maybe look twisted in the eyes of the judges -- all things that reduce the scores given to the diver.

Divers must learn this most important of skills from the very beginning of their diving careers. A good drill is to have them lie on their back with legs straight, feet together, toes pointed and a "flathand" grabbed and then on your command "STRETCH" -- they try to make their body 10 feet long and hold this tight stretched position for 10 seconds. Relax and then repeat 10 times. In addition, every practice should include time spent on learning to enter the water straight (read: VERTICAL) with this tight body position and good form (Legs Straight, Feet Together, Toes Pointed).

USA Diving Registration and Safety Certification

Coaches beware - make sure you have your USA Diving registration and safety certification. USA Diving will be checking your registration at all the regional, zone and national level meets.

They have also partnered with the American Red Cross, and you can get your first aid requirements online. For more information CLICK HERE. Don't procrastinate, get certified!

Get Ready for Spring!

Spring is upon us and that means competitions! NCAA championships just finished and the spring regionals are already in progress. What does that mean for coaches - check your boards and stands and be proactive! Springboards And More has multiple equipment packages that can help fix problems that occur to Duraflex Diving Stands. The most common problems occur on hinges, fulcrums and guardrails, and these are easy fixes. Questions - give us a call at (877) 348-3246.

• Springboards And More Equipment Packages

University of Tennessee's Incredible New Pool (Diving Well)

Here is a photo of the incredible University of Tennessee Aquatic Center. The facility is set to open in mid-March and will host the 2008 U.S. Olympic Diving Team Selection Camp immediately following the 2008 Olympic Diving Trials. The University of Tennessee Diving Team is coached by Dave Parrington and the equipment was installed by Springboards and More. (www.SpringboardsAndMore.com)

Sell Springboards And More Items At Your Next Diving Meet

Springboards And More offers consignment sales for many of our most popular items - Sammys & Aqua Towels, Meet Supplies, Wrist Grips, Books & Videos, Equipment Packages, and an assortment of diving related items. A great fundraising idea for your team! Visit our website at SpringboardsAndMore.com or contact us at (877) 348-3246 for more information.