Making a brief biographical review of the author (my person), I want to tell you that I am a Venezuelan of 23 years, a civil engineer, and that for more than 15 years I dedicated a large part of my childhood and adolescence to training as a diver, since from the first At the time I knew about sports (when I was 6 years old) it was love at first sight, nowadays it is one of my passions. I had the opportunity to be part of the national team of Venezuela for 6 years, getting to participate in several international competitions such as South American, Central American, Pan American, World Cups, among others, becoming a South American and Central American runner-up and having international recognition for my outstanding participation . No more comments to add, let's talk about the diving ...
The diving or Ornamental jumps, is one of the most attractive sports that exists (at least for me) due to its degree of complexity and precision required to execute a good dive, considered a high risk sport, which consists of throwing to the water of a swimming pool (in the case of Olympic swimming pool dives), said pool is adapted for sport in terms of depth, size, height of the platforms and trampolines, among other necessary specifications. Lakes, rivers or the sea (in the case of the cliffs), which may be the shore of the body of water, a rock, mound, rock, cliff, in the case of natural sites, or from some fixed point to more 20 meters high (in the case of high-altitude dives). The difficulty depends on the height and acrobatics that are carried out in the time of fall, in addition and the cleanliness of the entrance to the water. As for the clothing of the divers, they are used: short swimsuit.
Something interesting in the rules of this sport is that, the height of the trampoline can be one or three meters in the World Championships and only three meters in the Olympics. The platform is ten meters in both jousts, although there are also platforms of one, three, five and seven and a half meters, which are generally used for competitions of smaller categories or for the preparation of dives, in order to raise them to the Ten meter platform. In the following image (Figure 1), each of the platforms and trampolines used in an Olympic diving pool is shown.
Figure 1
Some say that the diving began with competitions, in ancient Greece, where on the coasts of the Peloponnese and on the Aeolian Islands there were jumping competitions. Also in the Cretan civilization have been found vestiges that show exercises and competitions of figures of jumps to the sea. Trampoline jumps, influenced by the development of gymnastics, began in Europe at the end of the 19th century, and were included, for the first time as an Olympic category, in men's modality, at the St. Louis Games of 1904. They only included of "variety" and "normal" tests. In the feminine section the debut takes place in the Games of Stockholm 1912.
Regarding the format of the competitions, this sport suffered alterations until the Olympic Games of Sydney 2000, when synchronized competitions were included in the 3-meter trampolines and 10-meter platforms. The last modification was made in the world water sports tournament held in Budapest, Hungary, which includes the new modality of mixed diving, ie a synchronized diving of a woman and a man, this modality is waiting to be included in the forthcoming Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games.
It is recommended that those who wish to practice the discipline begin between 5 and 7 years of age, the reason for this is that, because it is an acrobatic sport, which needs a flexible body and in conditions suitable for the execution of dives, as well as a training from the most basic dives, that is why this requirement is indispensable. However, there are those who make it a little bigger giving favorable results, due to several reasons, the first is that the athlete probably previously practiced an acrobatic sport such as gymnastics, since the artistic gymnastics and the dives are closely related, facilitating the Athlete, perform somersaults and acrobatics in the air.
Another reason may be that the person is extremely flexible, brave and talented for this sport, making the advance of the performance level much faster and more efficient. In figure 3, I show some of my first steps as an athlete, I was 10 years old, on that occasion I was with a friend, we both belonged to the national diving team of Venezuela, and for both was our first international competition, on that occasion it was in 2005 in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. (If you asked yourself why my hair is so, it is because it is customary that in the first international competition, the most experienced athletes cut their hair in a particular way to the younger athletes, as a "christening".
This sport consists of jumping from a 1 or 3 meter springboard, or a 10 meter platform, making aerial figures with the most perfect performance possible. The jumps are divided into 5 phases, which will be subject to analysis and evaluation by the judges, and are the following:
The approach race: This is to rate the approach of the diver at the end of the trampoline, this point of maximum concentration. The execution of the jump begins when the signal is given by the referee. The body will be straight, the head erect and the arms stretched in any position.
The impulse or takeoff: It is the jump that occurs to leave the trampoline. The control, balance and power of the takeoff will be scored. Each of the two phases explained is presented in Figures 4 and 5.
Figures 4 and 5
The Execution: It is about evaluating the jump in itself, analyzing the technique, the position, the turns, etc.
In the synchronized jumps, obviously, the coordination of the movements of the two jumpers during the flight will be considered.
Entry into the water: The angle of entry into the water, its verticality with the body straight and the feet together, the amount of water displaced and the arms stretched beyond the head, will be scored. One of the most important aspects, at this point, is to splash as little as possible when entering the water.
In the synchronized jumps the coordination and angles of both entries in the water will also be subject of examination by the judges.
Specialties and Requirements
On the 1 meter trampoline:
Each diver must perform 6 jumps (5 for the vaulters) of different groups without limit of coefficient of difficulty, both in the eliminatory, in the semifinal and in the final.
On the 3 meter trampoline:
This test is Olympic for men from London 1908 and for women since Antwerp 1920.
In the eliminatory and in the final, the jumpers must perform 6 jumps (the jumpers 5) of different groups with no limit in the difficulty coefficient. In the semifinal, each diver must perform 5 jumps of different groups, where the sum of the coefficients does not exceed 9.5.
On the 10 meter platform:
This test is Olympic for men from London 1908 and for women from Stockholm 1912.
In the eliminatory test and in the final, each diver must perform 6 jumps (5 for the vaulters) of different groups with no limit in the difficulty coefficient. In the semifinal, each diver must perform 4 jumps of different group, where the sum of the coefficients does not exceed 7.6.
On the 3-meter synchronized and 10-meter synchronized trampoline:
This test is Olympic for men and for women since Sydney 2000. In the eliminatory and in the finals, each pair must perform 2 jumps with a fixed difficulty coefficient of 2.0 for each, followed by 3 jumps with no limit in the coefficient. In this series of jumps each pair must perform at least one jump where both jumpers have a forward exit, a jump where both jumpers have a back exit, and at least one round with an exit in combination, where one jumper comes forward and another jumped out backwards.
In height of 27 meters:
This test is premiered at the 2013 Barcelona World Aquatics Championships, both for men and for women since Sydney 2000. Athletes take about three seconds to reach the water and fly at 100 kilometers per hour to fall on their feet. According to the established competition format, the jumpers compete the test in two days. In the first, classification is made, with one fixed jump and one free jump; On the second day the final is disputed, with three jumps.
Groups of jumps:
Of the six types of jumps, the first four groups are jumps where rotations are made in relation to the starting position and the situation of the springboard or platform. The fifth group refers to any jump involving twists of ringlets. The sixth and last group refers to any jump that starts with a balance from the platform. The six groups are:
1. Group ahead: The starting position begins facing the front of the springboard or platform and the rotation of the jump is made towards the water in the same direction. The jumps of this group are very varied and depend on where they are made (platform or trampoline) and range from the simple jump to the four medium mortals.
2. Group back: The initial position starts with the jumper back to the water and the direction of rotation is backwards, that is, towards the water.
3 Reverse group: The starting position starts with the diver looking towards the water and the rotation is backwards. The part of the head closest to the trampoline is the nape of the neck.
4. Group inside: The initial position of the diver begins with his back to the water. In the rotation of the jump, the forehead will be the part of the head that passes closest to the platform or trampoline.
5. Group of corkscrew: This group includes any jump with twists and ringlets (excluding balance jumps). There are four types of jumps with corkscrew, forward, backward, inverse and inward.
6. Balance or handstand group: The jumpers begin the jump in position of balance of arms from the front of the platform. There is no such group on a trampoline.
Jump positions:
The letter at the end of the number indicates the position in which the jump is executed.
• Stretched position: The body is kept completely stretched without bending the legs. The hips and knees will remain rigid and the feet together. The arms will be placed according to the jump or depending on the moment of realization of it.
In the picture you can see the angel jump (stretched jump) performed with the head tilted back, the back slightly arched and keeping the feet together so that they form a straight line from the hips to the toes. When jumping upward the arms extend sideways to shoulder height, keeping them up until the diver is close to the water, at which point the arms meet above the head and the hands are placed in such a way that come in contact with the water before the rest of the body.
• Carped position:The body will be bent at the hips until the legs are joined to the chest, keeping the legs straight and the knees rigid. It is usually done at the highest point of the jump. The position of the arms will depend on the type of jump and when it is. It is also called a knife jump.
• Shrunken position: The body is bent at the hips with the knees bent until the thighs meet with the chest. The arms surround the legs, while the knees are held together.
Free or discretionary position: Indicates the option of the diver to use a combination of the 3 mentioned positions (7, 8 and 9), in a single jump. Frequently used in jumps of the group of ringlets.
Denomination of the jumps:
The common way of naming each jump is by its complete description, composing the name from the group, the number of ringlets, the number of mortals or turns and the position, for example: 2 and a half turns backwards in carped position. However, there is a technical nomenclature to refer to each jump and consists of identifying by 3 or 4 numbers and a letter the set of elements of the jumps (group, position, turns, etc.). The jumps with corkscrews have 4 numbers and the rest 3. Following the example, the nomenclature of this would be: 502D.
The first digit will indicate the group to which the jump belongs. For example, if the number starts with 5 it is a jump that belongs to the corkscrew group. In the forward, backward, reverse and in groups, a 1 as a second digit indicates that the jump has a "flight" action during its execution. If there is no flight action, the second digit is a 0. For example, if the number starts with 31 it will be a jump of the inverse group with a flight action. In the equilibrium jumps (jumps starting with the number 6, the second digit indicates the group or direction to which the jump belongs: 1 = forward, 2 = back, 3 = inverse. In the corkscrew group, jumps starting with the number 5, the second digit indicates the group or direction of the output as indicated in point 2, that is: 1 = forward, 2 = back, 3 = inverse, 4 = inside, 5 = ringlets, 6 = equilibria. The third digit indicates the number of deadly media that are executed. For example, 1 = ½ mortal, 2 = 1 mortal, 3 = 1 mortal and ½, etc. In the corkscrew and balance groups, the fourth digit indicates the number of ringlets to be made.
Judges and score:
Unlike other modalities, where a certain number of well-established parameters are evaluated (technical standards, times, etc.), the jump judges must score, in addition to those already mentioned, other less objective factors, such as, for example, their own style of the diver, referring to the shape or personal characteristics of the movement of each diver.
The aspects to consider when scoring the overall impression of a jump are the technique and elegance of:
• The starting position and the race.
•The takeoff.
•The flight.
•The entrance.
In the synchronized jumps, in addition the following factors will be considered:
• The starting position, the race and the start, including the similarity in height.
• Coordination in time of the movements during the flight.
• The similarity in the angles of the entries.
• The comparison in the distance of the entrances from the trampoline or the platform.
• The timing of the entries.
In the Olympic Games, Championships and World Cups 7 judges will be designated for individual events, and 11 judges for synchronized events, of the last 5 of them will score the jump synchronization, 3 will score the execution of a jumper and 3 the execution of the other jumper.
In the rest of competitions, the individual events may have 5 judges and 9 synchronized jumps of which 5 will judge the synchronization, 2 will control the execution of a jumper and another 2 that of the other jumper.
The judges will score from 0 (jump completely failed) to 10 (excellent jump), with half-point increments, the phases or the parts of the jump already described. The final note of the judges will be obtained as follows:
• If there are 7 judges who score an individual test, the 2 highest notes and the 2 lowest notes will be disregarded. When two or more notes are the same, only two of the same notes will be deleted.
• If there are only 5 judges who score an individual event, the highest and lowest grades will be eliminated.
• If 11 judges score in synchronized jumps, the highest and lowest scores of a jumper's execution scores will be eliminated, the highest and lowest of the other jumper's execution and the highest and lowest. of the scores for the synchronization. When two or more notes are the same, any of them may be eliminated.
• If 9 judges score in synchronized jumps, the highest and lowest note of execution and the highest and lowest sync note will be eliminated. When two or more notes are the same, any of them may be eliminated.
The previously obtained notes will be added and the result will be multiplied by the coefficient of technical difficulty (CD or DD) of the executed figures, which ranges between 1.2 and 3.7, and finally that number is multiplied by 0.6 to obtain the final note of the jump.
Scores of the jump
• 0 Points: Failed jump
• 0.5 - 2 points: Unsatisfactory jump
• 2.5 - 4.5 points: Poor jump
• 5.0 - 6.5 points: Successful jump
• 7.0 - 8.0 points: Good jump
• 8.5 - 9.5 points: Very good jump
• 10 points: Excellent jump
Example of total calculation:
Judges score: 6-5-5-5-5-5-4
The 6 and the 4 are eliminated
There are 5 + 5 + 5 + 5 + 5 = 25 left
25 x CD = 25 x 2.0 = 50
50 x 0.6 = 30 points.
Shoulder injuries
Shoulder injuries usually occur during entry into the water when the arms extend over the head and they are forced backwards. Athletes usually feel that the shoulder leaves the joint when their shoulders are dislocated. Most of the time, the shoulder returns to the joint on its own; This is known as subluxation (partial dislocation). If the athlete requires help to return him to his place, this is known as dislocation. The risk of recurrence of dislocation is high for young people who participate in these sports. It may be recommended to perform stretching exercises of the shoulders, the placement of the arm in a sling and, in some cases, surgery to prevent recurrence.
Chronic pain in the shoulder is usually due to a pinch of the rotator cuff (the tendons around the top of the shoulder). This is more common in athletes with weak muscles of the shoulder blade. Symptoms include severe or sharp pain on the front or side of the shoulder that gets worse when the arm is on the head. The treatment involves exercises to strengthen the muscles of the scapula and the rotator cuff.
Neck injuries
The repetitive extension of the neck when entering the water can cause irritation of the neck joints. This results in stiffness and spasms of the muscle when the neck is turned or looks up. Athletes with a tingling or burning sensation in the arm may have a cervical disc herniation or "sting" and should see a doctor. Stingers are stretch lesions in the nerves in the neck and spine. Because the force of the impact is greater with a 10-meter platform dive, there are more complaints about neck problems with tower divers.
Elbow injuries
Elbow pain can occur when the athlete's elbow is over-extended when entering the water. The ulnar nerve ("elbow bone") can stretch and cause pain, numbness or burning of the arm in the fingers. If the ligament of the elbow is stretched, it can cause pain, weakness and instability of the elbow. Athletes with pain on the outside of the elbow may have a condition called osteochondritis dissecans. This condition can cause a disability to straighten the elbow and lock, catch or inflate the elbow. It may be necessary to perform X-rays to confirm the diagnosis.
Wrist / hand injuries
When the diver enters the water, they hold each other's hands one on top of the other with their palm facing the water. As they try to "open" a hole in the water, the wrist bends back. Doing this repetitively causes pain, swelling, stiffness and irritation of the wrist joint. This can be treated with rest, ice and anti-inflammatory medications that are not steroids. Holding with tape or reinforcing the wrist can also prevent future injury.
When the divers reach the water and try to join their hands to enter, sometimes they extend the thumb. This causes a sprain at the base of the thumb. Symptoms include pain, swelling, instability and weakness of the thumb. This can be treated and perhaps even prevented by taping the thumb while the dives are being made. Occasionally, a splinting of the thumb or even surgery is necessary to stabilize the thumb.
Low back pain
Spondylosis, the stress fractures of the bones in the lower part of the spine, is due to the extreme use of arch or extension of the back. Symptoms include pain in the lower back that gets worse with extension activities. Back or reverse dives are usually the most painful. The treatment of spondylolysis includes rest of the dives, physical therapy to improve flexibility and strength of the lower back and the central region (trunk) and possibly a brace orthopedic. Athletes who suffer from lower back pain for more than 2 weeks should consult their doctor. X-rays are normal, so other tests are often needed to diagnose spondylolysis. Successful treatment requires early recognition of the problem and timely treatment.
Damage to the discs can cause lower back pain that occurs with flexion, including spiking and insertion. The pain is usually worse on one side, it extends into the gluteus and occasionally goes down to the leg. The pain associated with the discs can also occur when sitting, lifting, jumping and bending. Success