High diving

Synchronized high diving

High diving is the act of diving into water from relatively great heights. High diving can be performed as an adventure sport (as with cliff diving), as a performance stunt (as with many records attempts), or competitively during sporting events. It debuted as a sport at the 2013 World Aquatics Championships in Barcelona.[1][2] In the world championships, men jump from a 27-metre-high (89 ft) platform while women jump from a 20-metre-high (66 ft) platform. In other official competitions, males generally dive from a height of 22–27 metres (72–89 ft) while women dive from a height of 18–23 metres (59–75 ft).[3] The sport is unique in that athletes are often unable to practice in an authentic environment until the days leading up to a competition.[1] High diving has been designated a sport separate from regular diving by FINA. High divers have achieved speeds of descent of 96 kilometres per hour (60 mph).

History

R. M. Stigersand in the Men's High Diving competition, Olympic Games, London, 1948

Initially, diving as a sport began by jumping from "great heights". Then it was exclusively practiced by gymnasts as they found it exciting with a low probability of injury. It then evolved into "diving in the air" with water as the safety landing base. Efforts by Thomas Ralph to name the sport "springing" were not realized, as the term "diving" was by then firmly rooted. It soon became a sporting event pursued by many enthusiasts. In the early years of the sport, finding suitable places to jump was an issue, and people started jumping from any high place – in Europe and the United States they started jumping from bridges, then diving head first into the water. This evolved into "fancy diving" in Europe, and, particularly in Germany and Sweden, as a gymnastic act. The sport further improved with gymnastic acts being performed during the diving process, and was then given the names "springboard diving" and "high fancy diving", which were events in the Olympics of 1908 and 1912. The first diving event as a sport, however, was in 1889 in Scotland with a diving height of 6 feet (1.8 m).[4] Today, in Latin America, diving by professionals from heights of 100 feet (30 m) or more is a common occurrence.[5]

Cliff diving has been documented as far back as 1770 when Kahekili II, king of Maui, engaged in a practice called "lele kawa," which in English means jumping feet first into water from great heights without making a splash.[6] The king's warriors were forced to participate to prove that they were courageous and loyal to the king. The practice later developed into a competition under king Kamehameha I, and divers were judged on their style and amount of splash upon entering the water.

The first female world champion in this sport was Cesilie Carlton of the United States, who won the first gold medal at the 2013 World Aquatics Championships with a total score of 211.60.[7][8] The first male world champion was Orlando Duque of Columbia who received a score of 590.20.[9]

Overview

Pool diving

Presently, the only permanent regulation-size high diving platform in the world is located in Austria, but it is not used during the winter period. The training practice is generally done on 10-metre-high (33 ft) platforms. The "competition dives" are collectively put in place in bits, similar to the way a dress is made.[10] Dives such as five somersault dives are thrilling, but some competitors prefer to perform simpler dives.[10]

Outdoor diving

Some outdoor diving involves launching from significant heights. One such diver noted, "There is adrenalin, excitement, danger – so many different energies go through your mind when you jump off. That goes away and then you hit the water come up and it's a massive elation, you feel such self achievement." A rescue team of scuba divers may be involved in some instances, and are required for any official competitions.

Cliff diving

A cliff diver at Acapulco, Mexico

Cliff divers practice the different components of their dives in isolation and only execute the complete dive during championship competitions. Cliff dives are considered extremely difficult and dangerous,[11] a challenge to every competitor; in addition to the physical challenges, they can be mentally challenging to perform.

Events

Both men and women participate in the High Diving World Championships, but the diving height for women is limited to 20 metres (66 ft). The Red Bull Cliff Diving World Series is held annually and draws crowds of up to 70,000 people. Participants dive from a variety of locations including castles, cliffs, towers, bridges, and the Copenhagen Opera House.[12] Three well-known divers – Gary Hunt, Blake Aldridge and Tom Daley – the last who were champions at the 2008 Olympic synchro, were set to dive on a 27-metre-high (89 ft) platform at the Moll de la Fusta, Barcelona's port; this dive was to be achieved in 3 seconds at a speed of 60 kilometres per hour (37 mph). Huge Hunt of the United Kingdom won the August 2015 FINA world championships. The average age of the participants in this event was 30. Efforts are being made by gymnasts to make this sport an Olympic event for 2020.[10]

World records for highest dive

There is considerable debate surrounding record claims for the highest dive, which largely revolves around criteria for what constitutes a valid dive.[13] The following is a list of dives that are contenders for the title.

Men

Date High diver Place Height Video Notes
1983 United States Dana Kunze San Diego, California, United States 52.4 m (172 ft) [14]
7 April 1985 United States Randy Dickison Ocean Park Hong Kong 53.2 m (174 ft 8 in)[15] [16] Multiple fracture of the left leg[15]
30 August 1987 Switzerland Olivier Favre Villers-le-Lac, France 53.9 m (177 ft) [17] Broke his back and had to be rescued from open water[13]
27 September 1997 Czech Republic Rudolf Bok Žďákovský most, Czech republic 58.28 m (191.207 ft) [18] Multiple fracture of thoracic vertebrae
4 August 2015 Switzerland Laso Schaller Maggia, Switzerland 58.8 m (193 ft) [19] Medial collateral ligament injury[19]

Women

Date High diver Place Height Video Notes
1982 United States Debi Boccia Rome, Italy[15] 33.3 m (109 ft 4 in)
7 April 1985 United States Lucy Wardle Ocean Park Hong Kong 36.8 m (120 ft 9 in) [16]

Health implications

Some research suggests that the impact associated with high diving could have negative effects on the joints and muscles of athletes.[1] To avoid injury to their arms upon impact with the water, divers from significant heights may enter the water feet first.

Gallery

See also

Olympic events

References

  1. 1 2 3 Napolitano, Salvatore; Di Tore, Pio Alfredo; Raiola, Gaetano (2013). "High Diving: Evaluation of Water Impact and Considerations on Training Methods". Journal of Human Sport and Exercise 8 (2): 283–289. doi:10.4100/jhse.2012.8.Proc2.30.
  2. ↑ Adrega, Pedro; Chiarello, Sarah (29 July 2013). "High Diving, Day 1: Pure adrenalin in the port of Barcelona!". FINA. Retrieved 31 July 2013.
  3. ↑ "General Rules and Regulations for International Competitions" (PDF). World High Diving Federation. Retrieved 11 September 2015.
  4. ↑ Dubey, H.C. (1 January 1999). Dph Sports Series-Diving. Discovery Publishing House. p. 2. ISBN 978-81-7141-478-9.
  5. ↑ Crego, Robert (January 2003). Sports and Games of the 18th and 19th Centuries. Greenwood Publishing Group. pp. 136–. ISBN 978-0-313-31610-4.
  6. ↑ "History: The real roots of cliff diving are found at Kaunolu, on the Hawaiian island of Lana´i." (PDF). World High Diving Federation. Retrieved 11 September 2015.
  7. ↑ "High Diving, Day 2: History was made: Cesilie Carlton (USA) is the first World champion!". FINA. 30 July 2013. Retrieved 9 September 2015.
  8. ↑ Rogers, Iain (30 July 2013). "American Carlton takes inaugural high diving gold". Reuters. Retrieved 31 July 2013.
  9. ↑ Wilson, Joseph (31 July 2013). "Orlando Duque wins 1st high diving world title". The Big Story. Associated Press. Retrieved 11 September 2015.
  10. 1 2 3 "High Diving, a Crowd-Pleasing Sport, Pursues an Olympic Platform". The New York Times. 5 August 2015.
  11. ↑ Harris, Rob. "The Dangers of Jumping into Water From Heights". Livestrong. Retrieved 10 September 2015.
  12. ↑ Hope, Nick. "US great Greg Louganis wants high diving at Olympic Games". BBC Sport. Retrieved 9 September 2015.
  13. 1 2 lolajones (7 April 2009). "Seriously extreme diving – the High Diving record, Dana Kunze, and the Deep Diving record, Nuno Gomes". xtremesport4u.
  14. ↑ ABC's Wide World of Sports - World Record High Dive Challenge 1983 (172 ft). YouTube. 20 February 2011.
  15. 1 2 3 "High Divers Set Marks at Hong Kong Event". The New York Times. Associated Press. 7 April 1985. Retrieved 9 September 2015.
  16. 1 2 World Record Highest Dives (Randy Dickison 174'8" and Lucy Wardle (Streeter) 120'9"). YouTube. 26 November 2008.
  17. ↑ Olivier Favre - World Record Highest Dive - 177ft - 54 m. YouTube. 21 August 2010.
  18. ↑ "Největší z Čechů" [Greatest Czechs]. Česká televize (in Czech). 2010. Retrieved 9 September 2015.
  19. 1 2 Sampiero, Josh (18 August 2015). "This crazy guy set a new cliff-jump world record". Red Bull GmbH. Retrieved 7 September 2015.

Further reading

External links

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