Diving became an Olympic sport in 1904 and has included women’s diving since 1912. Olympic diving remained unchanged from 1928 to 1996 with only the 10m platform and 3m springboard events for men and women. In 2000 they added synchronized versions of each event which brings us to the eight events we have today. By medal count the US is the dominant country in diving having won 48 of the 106 gold medals and 131 of the 320 medals in total. This doesn’t reflect the current state of diving though. The US hasn’t won a men’s diving medal since 1996 and hasn’t won a women’s medal since 2000.
The Team:
This year’s team is made up of 11 athletes, five men and six women. Four are returning divers from Beijing and one was with the team in Athens and Sydney as well.
Links are to twitter accounts for the athletes.
USA Diving
Men:
Chris Colwill* – 3m springboard
Troy Dumais*** – 3m springboard, 3m synchronized springboard
David Boudia* – 10m platform, 10m synchronized platform
Nick McCrory – 10m platform, 10m synchronized platform
Kristian Ipsen – 3m synchronized springboard
Women:
Cassidy Krug – 3m springboard
Christina Loukas* – 3m springboard
Katie Bell – 10m platform
Brittany Viola – 10m platform
Kelci Bryant – 3m synchronized springboard
Abby Johnston – 3m synchronized springboard
* – Was part of the team in Beijing
** – Was part of the team in Beijing and Athens
*** – Was part of the team in Beijing, Athens, and Sydney
Schedule:
The individual events will involve a preliminary round, a semifinal round, and a final round. The synchronized events involve only a final round. Each round involves six dives for men and five for women, with the scores for advancement coming from only the current round.
All Times ET
Sunday July 29th
10 AM – Women’s Diving – Synchronized 3m Springboard – Final
Monday July 30th
10 AM – Men’s Diving – Synchronized 10m Platform – Final
Wednesday August 1st
10 AM – Men’s Diving – Synchronized 3m Springboard – Final
Friday August 3rd
9:30 AM – Women’s Diving – 3m Springboard – Preliminary Round
Saturday August 4th
9:30 AM – Women’s Diving – 3m Springboard – Semifinals
Sunday August 5th
2 PM – Women’s Diving – 3m Springboard – Final
Monday August 6th
2 PM – Men’s Diving – 3m Springboard – Preliminary Round
Tuesday August 7th
5 AM – Men’s Diving – 3m Springboard – Semifinal
2 PM – Men’s Diving – 3m Springboard – Final
Wednesday August 8th
2 PM – Women’s Diving – 10m Platform – Preliminary Round
Thursday August 9th
5 AM – Women’s Diving – 10m Platform – Semifinal
2 PM – Women’s Diving – 10m Platform – Final
Friday August 10th
2 PM – Men’s Diving – 10m Platform – Preliminary Round
Saturday August 11th
5 AM – Men’s Diving – 10m Platform – Semifinal
3:30 PM – Men’s Diving – 10m Platform – Final
Past Results:
While the US hasn’t medaled in over a decade, there have been some competitive moments. The men’s and women’s synchronized springboard teams both finished 4th in Beijing. Chris Colwill finished 12th in the 3m springboard final, but was in 6th after the semifinal. Troy Dumais finished 6th in that same event. David Boudia was 10th in the 10m platform final, but was 5th in the semifinals.
Christina Loukas, the only returning woman, was 9th in the 3m springboard final, and 7th in the semifinals. Any of these divers could conceivably have a good event and challenge for a medal.
Dumais finished 6th in the 3m springboard in Athens and Sydney. Hopefully this time he can break out of his run of 6’s.
At the 2011 World Championships the US saw some good results by their divers. Dumais finished 5th in his 3m springboard competition, but David Boudia won the silver in the 10m platform competition. Nick McCrory was also strong and finished 6th. The 3m synchronized springboard team of Dumais and Kristian Ipsen finished in 4th and 10m synchronized platform team of Boudia and McCrory finished 5th after a 2nd place showing in the preliminary round. On the women’s side Christina Loukas finished 4th in the 3m springboard competition. While the US only won one medal in the World Championship, it seems they might be in contention for several in London.