A Look Inside the World of Competitive Diving


Competitive diver Hope Flanigan, age 16, prepares the go-to breakfast she eats before every meet - a hearty bowl of Frosted Mini-Wheats - on the crowded television stand in her family's hotel room.
Hope prepares to take her first practice dive from the 3-meter board. This is Hope's first dive meet of the upcoming intense four-month season which culminates at Nationals in Nashville, TN in June.

The judges, coaches, and Hope's teammates watch as she executes a 203c, which is a back one and a half. Each diver performs a total of ten dives of varying difficulty per meet.

Hope consults with head coach Bob Ketrick after her meet. Bob, the head coach at Pacific Northwest Dive in Federal Way, WA, has been Hope's coach since she began diving one and a half years ago.

Hope is less-than-impressed with her 3-meter dive results, placing 7th out 8 girls in her age group. As a former gymnast, Hope switched to diving one and a half years ago is still learning the ropes but improving every day.

Bonus Portrait Shot:
Two days before her meet, Hope "smacked" (landed face first on the water) attempting a two and a half flip dive off the 3-meter board, over nine feet in the air. The smack resulted in broken blood vessels around her eyes and massive welts on her arms and legs, but she's a trooper and finished the first day of competition with a smile on her face.

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