Diving

Press Release:

ASA London Region "Athlete" of the Year - Diving 2013

Crystal Palace Diver, Georgia Ward, Britain's top Junior Platform diver was named as the ASA London Region "Athlete" of the Year - Diving 2013

Georgia is ranked 33 in the World Senior rankings with FINA after her recent 5th place finish in the final of the Russian leg of the Senior World Grand Prix.

GLL Sport Foundation have supported the rising star for the past four years.

Georgia Ward is coached jointly by Xiangyan Kong and Chen Wen the 2004 & 2008 British Olympic Head Coach and trains full time at GLL's Crystal Palace National Sports Centre

Olympic Coach Chen when said " This girl is very special. She was a former gymnast that we noticed when talent testing more than 100,000 London school children.

Georgia leads our National Team Diving Champions and we think we will see her dive in Rio in 2016. Britain has not had a female Olympic medallist in 53 years and Georgia Ward has a chance.

For more detail contact Press at info@crystalPalaceDiving.co.uk

www.CrystalPalaceDiving.co.uk

History of Diving

The history of competitive diving spans roughly 100 years. During this period the nature of diving has changed dramatically. Junior divers now routinely perform dives once banned at the Olympic Games. A report following the IV Olympiad suggested elimination of the double somersault, because it was believed that a diver could not control the execution without risk of injury!

Origins of competitive diving

In the early nineteenth century, the only 'dive' was a simple plunge, similar to that used by swimmers. The diver springs from the bathside and aims to travel as far as possible under water. In Britain National Plunging Championships were held from 1883 to 1937 - but continue to this day in Yorkshire.

Plain and fancy diving

The early competitions involved just plain dives from platforms- they involved the dive we now call a forward dive straight . The Swedes performed graceful Swallow dives. In Britain the dive was originally performed with the arms held above the head in flight, and was known as the English header; however, this proved more difficult and not so visually pleasing as the Swedish version and eventually died out.

The sport as we know it today developed from gymnastics rather than swimming. At the beginning of the century the divers were mostly Swedish and German gymnasts who preferred practising with landings in water, rather than on hard floors. In summer gymnastic equipment was transferred to the beaches so that gymnasts could perform acrobatics and land in the sea. Diving involving gymnastic movements such as somersaults and/or twists was referred to as fancy diving. For some years, separate competitions were held for plain and fancy diving.

Platforms

Platforms, or highboards, are set at 5 metres, 7.5 or 10 metres above the water. They are usually made of concrete or steel, covered with a non-slip surface. They are at least 6 metres long and 2 metres wide.

Groups

Dives are divided into 6 groups:

Forward The diver faces forwards and rotates forwards
Backward The diver faces backwards and rotates backwards
Reverse The diver faces forwards and rotates backwards
Inward The diver faces backwards and rotates forwards
Twisting A twisting dive can be performed forwards, backwards, reverse or inwards, and involves a lateral (sideways) twist
Armstand These dives are performed only from platforms and begin from a handstand. They can be performed forwards, backwards, or reverse, and may include twists.

Rotation

Rotation is the forward or backward momentum of the dive. A simple dive is counted as a half-somersault. Competition divers can perform up four and a half somersaults from the 10 metre platform.

Positions

Dives may be performed in three different body positions:

Tuck The diver bends at the hip and knee, curling the body into a ball
Pike The diver bends at the hip, keeping the legs straight
Straight The diver keeps the whole body straight.

In twisting dives, a combination of these shapes may be shown. This is designated as the 'free' position. A 'flying' dive is one where the first portion of the dive is performed in the straight position, before another shape is shown.

To find a diving club near you please visit Great Britain Diving Federation http://www.diving-gbdf.com/