QuestionI have a son that is finishing up his freshman year in High school in Greenvile, SC. He is a level 10 gymnast. He qualified and competed in Men's JO Nationals last year. He has been State Champ for the past 3 years. He was a competitive swimmer during summer until 2years ago. Someone told him he should try diving, because colleges like gymnasts. He has never taken any lessons. Is this possible to get into at his age. We are looking at all options for college. There are no colleges in the south with men's gymnastics, so we thought we would look into this option. I believe both Clemson and USC have diving programs in SC but...I do not know of any diving schools for kids in the upstate of SC. Is diving a good option for a gymnast? I'm looking for advice before I call Clemson or USC.
Thanks.
AnswerPam -
Let me first answer your questions by saying that your son is nowhere near too old to start diving. Unlike gymnastics (where someone his age would be too old)diving is more of a lifelong sport. As an example, the last male diver to win an Olympic gold medal for the US (1992 men's 3 meter)started diving when he was a freshman in college!The other unusual thing was that before that, he was a wrestler in high school with no acrobatic background.
Most of club diving is comprised of females with a gymnastic background. There are also many boys who come to diving after retiring from gym. When a boy comes to diving with no gymnastic background, a good diving coach will have them cross train by doing dryland training using gymnastic skills on a trampoline.All the best male divers know how to use a trampoline and also know some basic floor exercise moves.Conditioning is also part of practice to develop flexibility and abdominal strength. Your son already posses the qualities that any diving coach is looking for.
The only collegiate diving programs in your state are found at the schools you have mentioned. Those schools are also the only place you are going to find to take him to learn to dive this summer. If you want him to be ready to dive in college, you have to start now so he is ready for the most important season in the summer of 2011.
I would take him to Clemson because that is the closest one to you and they have a good program for him to start at. Leslie Hasselbach is the head coach at Clemson. Contact her at
[email protected] to ask her about a learn to dive program. There is an age group team there called Tiger Paw Diving run by a coach named Brad Lambert. Go to the colleges athletic department website to read more about Leslie's background.
The program at University of So. Carolina is also very good but much farther away. The coach there, Todd Sherritt, is a very successful world class Olympic level coach. His diver recently won the USA Diving International Grand Prix meet on women's 3 meter. You may want to look into his program also and then decide which is best for you.I do not think you will find any other programs in your state.
There is a new website you can go to see a list of diving coaches from all over the country. www.diverstocollege.com is a site for divers to sign up to get recognized by college coaches. Go there and click on list of registered coaches to see all the schools that have diving.There are also excellent programs in your neighboring state of North Carolina. I would hesitate to pay the sign up fee right now and wait until a few years from now.It is free to look at the list of coaches.
Other websites about diving include:
www.usadiving.org. #1 national governing body for club diving. Click on Parents and also Store for educational materials.
www.aaudiving.org. Alternate national governing body.
www.diving.about.com - Site that explains the sport.
www.flipnrip.com - Site for divers and parents. Lots of diving info here.
www.divemeets.com - Has lists of coaches and teams from all over the US. If he pursues diving and competing, you will be using this site on a regular basis.
www.usadiver.com - Articles about diving from all over the world.
Your son will make an easy transition to diving. The hardest part for a gymnast is figuring out how to go head first, especially backwards. Also adapting to the bounciness of the board is another challenge. I am sure he will like diving and this summer is the best time to try it out. Good luck
