Longhorn Aquatics Diving
Sport of Diving
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Diving is classified as an art as well as a sport.
Beauty and grace must be added to feats of strength and agility while
the body is moving through the air. The diver must have total body
control and good kinesthetic awareness.
Divers compete in one-meter and three-meter
springboard events and also on platform. When competing platform,
divers may perform from five, seven and one-half, or ten meters.
In novice diving competitions divers may use the three-meter platform.
A dive is not judged by entry alone. All phases
of the performance are considered: the approach, the take-off, the
technique and grace during flight, and the entry into the water.
The judges score each dive, in its entirety, without concern for
difficulty as each dive has an assigned Degree of Difficulty (D.D.)
to reward the athletes for complicated skills.
STARTING POSITION ON THE BOARD - The diver stands
with his or her body straight, head erect, arms straight and to the
sides or above the head. Once a diver moves his or her arms from
a backward take-off position or starts to run in a forward take-off
position he or she must continue or the referee can call a balk.
One balk is allowed - resulting in a penalty of two points that is
deducted from each judge's score by the scorers as instructed by
the referee. Should a diver lose his or her balance and his or her
feet touch the platform in an armstand dive, the same rule applies.
A second balk results in a failed dive.
THE APPROACH - The diver walks down the board
maintaining good posture and must take at least four steps including
the hurdle. If a diver takes less than four steps the referee shall
instruct the scorers to deduct two points from the award of each
judge. The run should be smooth, straight and without hesitation.
THE TAKE-OFF - The diver must leave the board
from both feet on the springboard but may take off from one foot
on the platform. It shall be bold, reasonably high and confident
and may be performed either standing or running. The judges shall
award points for a standing dive, bearing in mind the height and
standard of execution which might be expected from a running dive.
Only one bounce on the same spot is allowed, it is permissible for
a diver to start the board in motion in preparing for a back take-off.
THE FLIGHT - The diver's legs should be together
and toes pointed. There are six groups of dives:
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Forward: forward take-off (facing the water)
with forward rotation.
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Backward: backward take-off (back to the water)
with backward rotation.
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Reverse: forward take-off with backward rotation.
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Inward: backward take-off with forward rotation.
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Twist: Any of the above groups with 1/2 to
4 twists added.
-
Armstand: (from the platform only) dives performed
from a handstand on the end of the platform.
The body positions are:
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A: Straight - body not bent.
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B: Pike - body bent at the hips only.
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C: Tuck - body bent at hips and knees.
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D: Free - combination of the above positions
(used for twist dives)
Arm position is optional.
If a position is clearly other than announced,
the referee will declare that the highest mark shall be two points.
If a position is partially other than announced the maximum mark
is 4.5. If the diver touches the end of the board, or dives to the
side of the direct line of flight - this indicates, no matter how
well the dive may have been executed, that they were too close to
the board for proper execution and the judges make their own decisions
regarding the deduction of points from their scores. It is proposed
that in this case the highest mark be 4.5.
TWISTS: Twisting must not be done manifestly
from the board in straight dives with one-half or full twist. In
pike dives with the twist, the twist must not be started until there
is a definite pike position shown. Twists may be done at any time
in somersaults with twists. If a twist is more or less than announced
by 90 degrees the diver receives zero fro that dive as declared by
the referee.
FLYING DIVES: In all flying somersault dives
a straight position should be clearly shown for approximately one-half
of the somersault. This position should be assumed from the take-off
except for dive 116 in which the straight position must be shown
after one somersault has been completed.
ENTRIES:
HEAD FIRST: body is vertical, or nearly so,
with arms stretched beyond the head in line with the body, hands
close together.
FEET FIRST: body is vertical, or nearly so,
with arms tightly at the sides of the body. A dive is finished when
the whole body is completely under the surface of the water. What
happens under the water is not judged.
The diver must execute all dives without help
from anyone after the referee has signaled the start of the dive.
After the competition is started, a diver must
not bounce on the springboard until after the score of the previous
diver has been announced. A diver who refuses the execution of a
dive shall receive zero points for that dive.
A referee, a panel of 5 or 7 judges, an announcer
and scorers conduct a diving meet. The referee manages the event
and ensures all regulations are observed. After each dive, the referee
signals the judges who, without communication with any colleagues,
immediately flash their awards. Points are awarded from zero to ten,
according to the opinion of the judge based on the criteria and the
performance.
What The Scores Mean
Very Good 8-1/2 to 10 Good 6-1/2 to 8
Satisfactory 5 to 6 Deficient 2-1/2 to 4-1/2
Unsatisfactory 1/2 to 2 Failed 0
The judges' scores are written in order on each
diver's sheet. The highest and lowest scores are eliminated and the
remaining scores are added. This score is then multiplied by the
D.D to produce the final score for the dive. The scores for each
dive are added to give the total score for the event. The diver with
the highest cumulative score at the end of the competition is the
winner. During a competition, the divers must perform compulsory
and optional dives, the number of dives varies depending on the competition.
IMPORTANT TERMS FOR DIVING PARENTS:
Springboard Diving: Diving from the one and
three-meter springboards.
Platform Diving: Diving from the five, seven
and a half, or ten-meter platforms.
Diving List or List: The dives a diver uses
for competition are called a list.
Rip: A rip is when you enter the water with
no splash.
Smack or Crash: An incorrect and painful landing
on the water.
Degree of Difficulty (DD): All dives are assigned
a numeric DD that rates dives based on difficulty. For example, a
front dive tuck on 1M has a DD of 1.3 while a front 3 ½ tuck on 1M
has a DD of 3.0. The DD is multiplied by the diver's raw score (total
judges' score) to calculate a total award for each dive.
Required or Voluntary dives: The easy ones,
where DD is limited.
Optional Dives: Can be simple or difficult,
there is no limit on DD.
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