professional and college diving

Question
what does it take to be a college diver and a professional diver?

Answer
Kate -

I'll answer this in two parts and start with the college diver part first:

The first thing it takes to be a college diver is to have the grades, core classes and good SAT score to be eligible by the standards set by the NCAA. All high school students who want to dive in college must obtain an eligibility number. Go to www.ncaastudent.org and click on
'Register to become a student athlete'.

The second thing a prospective college diver needs is a good list of optional dives. In college diving events, divers only do the harder dives consisting of multiple somersaulting and twisting dives with high degree of difficulty. College coaches, especially Division I coaches, recruit high school age divers based on how well they do in club meets. These meets are primarily run by USA Diving at the junior Olympic and senior level. Some events are under the direction of the A.A.U. Divers need a proven track record in these types of meets from the time they are age 15 to 18. Go to www.usadiving.org or www.aaudiving.org for more info.

Professional diving in the US is very small and consists of only the most elite level divers who have completed their college diving career. These divers receive stipend money from the national governing body to supplement their income.Some of these divers compete on an international level for prize money awarded by FINA the international governing body for aquatic sports. Other professional divers include divers who join water shows which are mainly in  the summer. Cirque Du Soleil is another company that hires former divers for their water show called 'O'. They recruit only the most elite Olympic level divers in the world Then there is the Red Bull Cliff Diving Series consisting of former 10 meter platform divers who try out every year to see if they are good enough to dive from 26 meters. They win prize money based on how they finish at different meets held all over the world.

Try this website for more info on college diving:

www.diving.about.com  - enter college diving in the search box and read articles about college diving.

Hope all this helps.