Diving


Background
Diving is classified as an art as well as a sport.  Beauty and grace combine with strength and agility as the body moves through the air.  The diver has total body control and good kinesthetic awareness.

Diving was developed from gymnastics rather than swimming.  The earliest recorded diving competition took place in 1871 off the London Bridge.  Diving has been an Olympic event for men since 1904 and for women since 1912.  The first concrete diving tower was built at Swimming Stadium Tourelles for the 1924 Paris Olympics.

How to Watch Diving
There are three major components to look at in diving.  The first is the starting position, approach, and take off.  The judges are looking for this to be smooth and well-balanced with a high jump off the board and a minimal distance from the board.  The second is execution in the air.  Here the judges are looking for speed of rotation and proper positioning.  Finally, the entry in to the water is judged on the angle of entry (should be vertical), distance from the board, body head and arm alignment and the amount of splash.

The best way to photograph diving is without a flash.  Make sure the shutter speed is fast enough to stop the diver, 500^th of a second will do it!

What Differentiates Good Diving from Exceptional Diving
The best dives can be distinguished based on four characteristics: strength and power, economy of movement, tight positions and good body line, and precision.  To demonstrate strength and power divers should have exceptional height off the springboard or platform, and their twists and somersaults should be fast.  Economy of movement entails performing the most complex dives with fewest movements necessary and the ability to make a difficult dive look simple.  For tight positioning and a good body line the divers are seeking to keep a close position with toes pointed, legs together and no form breaks.  Finally, precision is key.  The best divers will be more precise and consistent.  It is important to make the fewest and smallest errors.

How Dives Are Scored
A panel of judges for an individual contest consists of seven judges, while a synchronized event is assessed by nine judges; four judge the execution of individual dives and five assess synchronization.  Each judge on the panel can award up to 10 points per dive and the highest and lowest marks awarded are disregarded.  The remaining scores are then added together and multiplied by the degree of difficulty of the dive.  Finally, that total is multiplied by 0.6 (a weighting factor which equates a competition with five judges to those with seven judges) to determine the final score.

For more info on Diving, contact the BC Diving Association at www.bcdiving.ca or (604) 333-3661.