About United States Diving, Inc.
U.S. Diving Competitive Programs
Diving "Fun Facts"
Common Questions
Future Champions Program
Funding
History Of U.S. Diving, Inc.
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About United States Diving, Inc.
United States Diving, Inc., is a not-for-profit
organization recognized by the U.S. Olympic
Committee as the sport's National Governing
Body (NGB). In short, it is a network of people
working together to conduct, promote and
participate in one of America's most successful
Olympic sports.
It consists of athletes, coaches, officials and
volunteers who strive to make diving in the
United States the best it can be. With its
national office in Indianapolis, U.S. Diving
offers diversified programs designed to appeal
to broad numbers of diving enthusiasts -- from
the beginner to the Olympic champion!
Our Objective
Becoming a good diver takes years of practice
and dedication, along with plenty of support
from coaches, family and friends. That's why
United States Diving was formed -- to provide
the incentive and services that help turn
athletes' goals into realities.
Who Belongs
U.S. Diving is open to anyone with an interest
in the sport of diving and/or the desire to
support America's Olympic movement. Membership
includes athletes, coaches and officials who
form the sport's competitive backbone. Other
members have never set foot on a diving board
-- they simply enjoy the grace and beauty
inherent in diving. Some serve active roles in
administering beginning through advanced diving
programs nationwide. Others provide much needed
financial support by becoming annual or life
members.
Registered athletes of all ages and experience
levels compete in local and regional meets. For
some, these competitions are "springboards" to
national championships and, ultimately, the
Olympic Games. For others, they are a way of
having fun and meeting new friends.
All U.S. Diving programs emphasize safety,
physical fitness and recreation.
Membership Program
Member benefits include: a subscription to
Inside USA Diving magazine, official rule book,
annual directory, membership card, bumper
sticker, free admission to national
championships and liability insurance for
coaches, officials, individual and family
members.
For more information or to contact the
registration chairman in your area, write to:
U.S. Diving, Pan American Plaza, 201 S. Capitol
Avenue, Suite 430, Indianapolis, Indiana 46225.
Or, call (1-800) 237-DIVE. An answering service
will record your name and address, and you will
be provided with the name and phone number of a
local U.S. Diving representative.
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U.S. Diving Competitive Programs
Junior Program
U.S. Diving's Junior Program is designed for
divers 18 and under who desire to improve their
skills. The program is conducted within 41
local diving associations across America.
For the beginning diver: complete "learn to
dive" instruction emphasizing fundamentals,
technique and physical fitness.
For the intermediate diver: graduated levels of
instruction with opportunities to compete in
local, regional and zone meets.
For the advanced diver: competition at national
and international levels for those who have the
ability and desire to excel.
Senior Program
U.S. Diving's Senior Program identifies and
develops top national and international-caliber
divers for high profile events such as the
Olympic Games, Goodwill Games and World Aquatic
Championships. Qualified divers annually
compete in: United States Spring and Summer
Championships, plus numerous international
competitions.
Masters Program
U.S. Diving's Masters Program is designed for
divers 21 and over who no longer compete in the
Senior Program, but wish to remain active. The
Masters Program offers the following
competitions: Local and invitational meets
throughout the United States, annual Indoor and
Outdoor National Championships, World
Championships every two years and Grand Masters
events for Olympians, national masters
champions and senior national medalists.
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Diving "Fun Facts"
There are five diving events for men and women:
one-meter springboard, three-meter springboard,
10-meter platform, 3-meter springboard
synchronized and 10-meter platform
synchronized.
A background in gymnastics, trampoline and/or
dance can be beneficial for aspiring divers.
Divers choose from six groups of dives --
forward, back, reverse, inward, twisting and
armstand. Armstand dives are only used in
platform competition.
The official dive chart lists 63 basic dives
for 1-meter springboard, 67 for 3-meter
springboard and 84 for platform. With body
positions of straight, pike, tuck or free for
the three events, 345 dive variations exist.
The degree of difficulty (DD) of those 345
dives range from 1.2 to 3.6.
The standard number of judges for major
national and international meets is seven.
Judges' scores range from 0 to 10 and are
awarded only in full or half-point increments.
A point total for a dive is derived as follows:
The high and low judges scores are thrown out.
The sum of the remaining five scores is
multiplied by the DD and then again by 3/5
(.6).
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Common Questions
How much practice time is involved?
Beginners practice between one and one and a
half hours, three times a week. Junior divers
practice from 10 to 15 hours per week.
What are the costs involved in lessons and
training?
The average cost of lessons is $40-$60 per
month for three to four months. If after
lessons you choose to join a team, beginning
training costs about $50-$75 per month. Top
competitive athletes pay coaching fees of
approximately $150 per month. Current annual
membership fees, which include athlete accident
insurance, are $15 for novices and $30 for all
other athlete members.
Are there college scholarships available for
diving?
Yes. Most NCAA Division I and II swimming
programs include diving. Contact the schools
you are interested in attending for scholarship
information.
Olympian? U.S. Diving will provide
opportunities for you to excel in the sport of
diving. If you possess the talent and
determination, U.S. Diving has a "feeder
system" that promotes divers from local meets
to regional, national, international and
ultimately Olympic competitions. The system is
based on place finishes in established events.
The higher you finish in national and
international meets, the more training
assistance (both monetary and scientific) is
available to you.
In terms of numbers, U.S. Diving currently has
10,000 registered athletes, yet only eight make
the U.S. Olympic Diving Team every four years.
However, the U.S. National Team, which competes
throughout the world, is comprised of
approximately 50 divers. About 200 divers
qualify for the U.S. Junior Championships and
roughly 150 compete in the U.S. Senior
Nationals, held twice a year.
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Future Champions Program
U.S. Diving's Future Champions Program is
designed to identify youngsters, ages seven to
14, who have a good chance to be successful in
the sport of diving. The program, which is
presented by coaches of local diving programs,
was developed by the U.S. Diving Talent
Identification Research Committee.
Phase I of the program includes a series of
test battery items used to measure the physical
attributes related to diving. Children selected
for the program will be offered up to eight
free lessons with a U.S. Diving program in
their area. Phase II, entitled "Champions
Challenge," features additional diving-specific
tests that will further trace and predict the
progress of the divers who have been targeted.
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Funding
As a not-for-profit organization, U.S. Diving
relies on outside sources of funding. These
sources include: Corporate sponsors and
suppliers, the U.S. Olympic Committee, private
donations and U.S. Diving's membership program
For More Information, Contact:
United States Diving
201 S. Capitol Ave., Suite 430
Indianapolis, Indiana 46225
(317) 237-5252
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History Of U.S. Diving, Inc.
By Barbara McLaughlin
Former U.S. Diving assistant executive director
In January 1981, the U.S. Olympic Committee
recognized United States Diving, Inc., as the
National Governing Body for the sport of
diving. That event was the culmination of a
challenging and often confusing transition
process that began several years earlier.
Appropriately, U.S. amateur sports' quest for
independence started in 1976 during the U.S.
Bicentennial. That year, the USOC adopted the
position that each sport could best serve its
participants by forming self-sustaining,
not-for-profit organizations. This represented
a major change as many sports were under a
large umbrella organization known as the
Amateur Athletic Union. Under the AAU, diving
had little to say about how its affairs and
finances were managed.
Former U.S. Diving President Micki King served
on the USOC Board of Directors from 1968-72 and
was part of President Ford's commission to
study Olympic sports. The commission's findings
resulted in the adoption of legislation that
led to each sport's independence. The
commission's report, completed in 1977,
provided the impetus for the Amateur Sports Act
of 1978 mandating each sport, as recognized by
its International Federation, be autonomous and
self-governing. In essence, the Sports Act did
away with the AAU's authority as the National
Governing Body for multiple sports.
Diving and other sports were now free to emerge
from under the AAU's umbrella to manage their
own finances and make their own rules. They
could use the services of the AAU, but they had
no further obligation. Diving and the other
aquatic sports (synchronized swimming, water
polo, swimming) wasted no time in moving toward
autonomy. However, since all four sports are
governed by one International Federation, FINA,
it was necessary to form one aquatics
organization to comply with the Sports Act.
With the help of Cincinnati attorney Ross
Wales, United States Aquatic Sports was
incorporated. Though USAS's primary purpose is
to comply with the Sports Act, it also
coordinates participation in world
championships.
As early as 1977, the AAU Diving Committee met
to discuss the legal steps necessary to form an
independent organization. Wales, an Olympic
swimming bronze medalist and eventual president
of U.S. Swimming and USAS, helped diving and
the other aquatic sports begin the task of
incorporating, setting up boards, adopting
bylaws, applying for service marks and securing
tax exempt status from the U.S. government. The
entire process took nearly five years to
complete.
The diving organization first became known as
the Competitive Diving Committee of the AAU in
January 1979. Several significant events took
place that year. Dr. Aaron S. Weinstein, who
had been chairman of the men's diving committee
at the AAU, became president of the
newly-formed CDC/AAU. The first board of
directors was named, and the AAU authorized the
transfer of all of diving's money into a
separate account. Raymond F. Hain, M.D., CDC
treasurer, made sure diving received all the
money it was due from the AAU.
Hain made several trips to Indianapolis to meet
with Ollan Cassell, then AAU executive
director. Cassell's cooperation was crucial,
since diving, while still with the AAU, had
received a substantial gift of stock from a
diving parent, Richard Lindner, in 1978. The
gift, known as the Helen Gill Lindner Memorial
Fund, provided annual dividends of $10,000 for
10 years and is still the largest single
donation to the sport. The fund still helps
fund special projects for U.S. Diving.
One of the first decisions the board made was
to arrange for the AAU to handle insurance and
athlete registrations. The CDC/AAU hired Bill
Flesher as its first diving administrator and
rented office space at the AAU House. Weinstein
and the board started a sustaining membership
program and were successful in convincing the
Phillips Petroleum Company, which had sponsored
aquatics at the AAU, to donate $45,000 per year
beginning in 1979.
As it became evident that diving wanted to and
could disassociate with the AAU, the group
redefined some of its objectives and asked Hain
to head up the search for a national sponsor.
He visited a number of foundations, including
the Phillips Petroleum Foundation. Other diving
people called on their contacts at various
corporations. In addition to helping Hain
secure both Phillips and Arena, USA, Inc., as
national sponsors, Weinstein established the
Mike Peppe Award for outstanding coaches, and
was personally involved in persuading other
diving families to buy into the newly-created
sustaining membership program. By March 1979,
more than $12,000 had been generated, and the
CDC/AAU had 700 card-holding members and 17
charter life members.
Also in 1979, the board held a logo contest to
establish the sport's identity. R. Jackson
Smith, a board member and architect from Old
Greenwich, Conn., designed the winning logo
that was used until 1996 when the current U.S.
Diving logo was unveiled.
The move toward autonomy continued in 1980. The
title of the AAYou newsletter, published by the
CDC/AAU, was changed to USA Diving and the
Official Diving Rules handbook was printed for
the first time. The AAU Championships became
the Phillips 66/U.S. Diving Championships, and
U.S. Diving's application for tax exempt status
was filed.
When rumors surfaced about a possible Olympic
boycott, Weinstein flew to Washington, D.C., to
meet with the U.S. secretary of defense and the
president's counsel. Sports were told competing
in Moscow's 1980 Olympic Games would endanger
national security, so the government wanted to
find a suitable replacement to honor Olympians.
Diving chose to hold the Olympic trials as
originally planned, and scheduled an Olympic
team tour of Japan and China, whose governments
also boycotted the Olympics. Through the
efforts of the board, and particularly Tom
Gompf - then chairman of the Olympic
International Committee, the team enjoyed a
successful international tour. The trip to
China helped foster goodwill and was
instrumental in laying the groundwork for the
highly competitive United States/China
exchanges that continue today. Weinstein was a
representative at the FINA congress held in
Moscow during the 1980 Olympics. As diving's
rules chairman, he incorporated the rules
passed by FINA into U.S. Diving's 1981 rule
book.
In September 1980, the first USAS convention
was held in Snowbird, Utah. Diving,
synchronized swimming and swimming assembled in
the same location, addressed common concerns
and held individual meetings. The initial
effort was a success, and the three sports
continue to combine efforts each fall (water
polo does not participate due to conflicting
competition schedules).
Diving's elections were held that fall, and
Hain was elected as the first president of U.S.
Diving. He served until 1982, then stepped down
thinking it would be better for the sport to
have 1976 Olympic springboard gold medalist
Phil Boggs as president during the 1984 Olympic
Games. Boggs, who passed away in 1990, served
as president until 1986.
With the transfer of the FINA franchise from
the AAU to USAS, diving's board approved the
name change from the CDC/AAU to United States
Diving, effective Dec. 30, 1980. The momentum
continued in 1981. With the USOC's official
recognition of U.S. Diving, the board of
directors accepted an invitation from the
Indiana Sports Corporation to establish its
headquarters at the IU Natatorium in
Indianapolis. The move would take place in late
1982 after the facility had been completed for
the National Sports Festival. In the interim,
U.S. Diving leased office space in the
Merchants Plaza in downtown Indianapolis.
In 1982, U.S. Diving signed Speedo America as
its national supplier for four years, and
Phillips renewed its commitment through 1984.
Speedo remains as the national team supplier
today, while the Phillips sponsorship continued
until 1996. In addition, a U.S. Diving
directory was published for the first time, and
local diving associations were newly defined.
At the 1981 USAS convention, also in Snowbird,
U.S. Diving held its first Sports Science
Seminar that was sponsored by the Lindner
Memorial Fund and coordinated by Sports Science
Chairman Dennis Golden. The seminar's
proceedings were published and received
international acclaim. Since then, more Sports
Science Seminars have been held, and the
concept was expanded with U.S. Diving's hiring
of Janet Gabriel as director of safety and
education in 1987.
With the 1981 departure of Flesher, who
accepted a position with Phillips, U.S. Diving
hired Todd Smith, the 1972 NCAA 1-meter
springboard champion at Ohio State University
and then University of Tennessee diving coach,
as its first executive director in November
1981. Smith, who has a law degree, received the
1990 Phil Boggs Award for outstanding
dedication to the sport.
Then, U.S. Diving received its tax exempt
status on Oct. 29, 1982. Contributions to U.S.
Diving were now tax-deductible, which helped
fundraising efforts considerably. With most of
U.S. Diving's initial administrative and legal
tasks finally accomplished, the organization
began to focus its energy on building and
maintaining financial security.
Another change took place in late 1987 when
U.S. Diving moved its permanent headquarters to
the Pan American Plaza, also in downtown
Indianapolis. Following Boggs, Gompf, King and
now Steve McFarland have served as U.S. Diving
presidents. The national staff has grown from
three in 1981 to a total of seven today.
More than 15 years since its incorporation,
U.S. Diving remains committed to its objective
of providing the incentive and support to help
turn American divers' goals into realities.
U.S. Diving continues to select and prepare the
best possible teams to represent the United
States in international competition, as well as
providing programs and educational services for
divers of all ages and skill levels.
History / Equipment / Glossary / Rules