Competition Write-ups

Rijeka Open 2024

Well done to our team of six divers who packed sunscreen with their shammies and flew to Croatia with a squad from Southampton Diving Academy to compete at this year's Rijeka Open.
The competition was held over four days at the Kantrida swimming pools complex, the same venue that staged the European Junior Diving Championships in 2023.
With temperatures soaring up to 30 degrees and the open-air pool just a stone’s throw from the beach overlooking the Adriatic Sea, it was an idyllic location for this open club competition.

Day one started with Sophia competing in the girls’ Group C (12/13 years) 1m, coming 10th on 195.60. In the girls’ Group A (16/18 years) platform event Tegan ranked 10th on 255.90.
The second day began with Sophia competing in the girls’ Group C 3m, ranking seventh on 222.00. In the boys’ Group B (14/15 years) platform Leo was eighth on 254.95.
The morning session of day three started with Eva, Tegan and Caitlin in the girls’ Group A 1m. Eva came seventh on 312.20, Tegan was sixth on 317.10 and Caitlin took the silver on 335.70. In the boys’ Group A 3m Alex came 12th on 337.00. In the afternoon session, Sophia claimed the bronze on 211.50 in the girls’ Group C platform.
In the morning session of day four, Alex was ninth in the boys’ Group A 1m on 331.60. In the girls’ Group A 3m event that followed, Eva came ninth on 345.15 and Caitlin finished sixth on 358.00. In the afternoon session, Leo was seventh in the boys’ Group B 3m on 317.85.
The meet concluded with the synchro events. Sophia teamed up with Ella Swete from Southampton for the girls’ Group D/C (9/13) 3m synchro, finishing fifth on 157.56. In the boys’ Group B/A (14/18) 3m synchro, Alex partnered with Max Goodwin (Dive London) and took the silver on 223.77.
Also worthy of a mention was Lily (Chandler) who represented Southampton here. In the girls’ Group A events, she came fifth on platform (279.10), fourth on 1m (330.40) and claimed silver on 3m (396.75).

The meet included clubs from Croatia, Dubai, Italy, Scotland, Sweden and Ukraine. Also there were a number of other English clubs: City of Leeds DC, City of Sheffield DC, Dive London and Southend Diving.

The events were run as straight finals and the World Aquatics age group conditions used in groups C, B and A. Thanks to the team from Southampton for allowing us to join them on this overseas trip.

South East Region Skills 2024
Well done to our team of 11 divers who competed at the South East Region skills competition at Tunbridge Wells.
This was the last regional skills qualifier to be held in the southern half of the country, with divers getting more competition experience and one last chance to try to qualify for the National Skills Finals, in July.
Our whole team here made their qualification standard, with seven divers improving their performances on the previous qualifier they had attended in March.
Scarlet and Amy-Jules competed first in B Female (14/15 years), claiming silver and gold respectively on 285.20 and 290.20 in both the open and closed classifications.
In E Female (8/9 years), Pollyanna was fourth in the open and won the gold in the closed on 270.25. In D1 Open (10 years), Barnabas took the bronze in the open and gold in the closed on 261.20. In D2 Female (11 years), Elodie stepped up with a sensational win in both the open and closed on 308.60 (a score that would have won this event at last year’s nationals). Competing for the first time at a regional skills qualifier, Oliver scored 288.45 to claim a silver in the open and gold in the closed of the D2 Open (11 years) event. In C1 Female (12 years), Sophie came 14th in the open and sixth in the closed on 270.00 - exactly on the qualification standard. Further up the pecking order Lara was 11th in the open and fourth in the closed on 274.05. Meanwhile, Lucia finished sixth in the open and took the silver in the closed on 289.25. In C2 Female (13 years), Martha came seventh in the open and fourth in the closed on 275.45. Willa scored 284.10, taking the bronze in the open and a silver in the closed. Well done to everyone again for qualifying. Next stop, Southend.

The detailed results are available here.

South East Region Age Groups 2024

Congratulations to our team of seven divers who competed at this year’s South East Region age groups.

The two-day meet, held at Southampton over the early May bank holiday, was the last regional opportunity for our divers to compete before the National Age Group Championships, in June. South East Region diving competitions have two sets of results: open (all clubs) and closed (South East clubs only). Our team here competed well, collecting scores of well-earned medals after their events.

Eva and Alex dived first in the Group A (16/18) 3m event. In the Female, Eva came fifth in the open and took a bronze in the closed on 261.50. In the Open, Alex won gold on 289.05 in both the open and closed.

Florence and Sophia competed in a parallel event: Group C (12/13) Female 1m. Florence claimed a silver in the open and won the closed on 166.40. Sophia was sixth in the open and took the bronze in the closed on 155.40.

It was gold and silver respectively for Lily and Libby in the Group D (9/11) Female platform, scoring 128.15 and 117.00 in both the open and closed. In the C Female 3m event, Sophia won both the open and closed on 184.25. Florence came sixth in the open and clinched a bronze in the closed on 167.75. In the Group A Female 1m, Tegan won both the open and closed on 266.80 and Eva took the bronze in both the open and closed on 240.85. In the Open, Alex took a silver in the open and gold in the closed on a score of 269.15.

Florence and Sophia competed first on the second day in the Group C Female platform. Sophia claimed silver in both the open and closed on 184.55. Florence came fifth in the open and took the bronze in the closed on 155.05. In the Group A Female platform, Tegan claimed a bronze in the open and silver in the closed on 241.80. Diving in the parallel D Female 1m event, it was gold for Lily and silver for Libby in both the open and closed, scoring 132.20 and 123.95 respectively. In the D Female 3m event, it was gold and silver again for Lily and Libby in both the open and closed - scoring 141.55 and 133.50 respectively.

The detailed results are available here.

East Region Age Groups 2024

Well done to our team of six divers who competed as ‘guests’ at this year’s East Region age group competition.
The two-day meet in Southend was the first of two regional opportunities for our divers to compete in the run-up to the National Age Group Championships, which this year is being held at the Sandwell Aquatics Centre in late June.
On day one, Florence, Sophia, Libby and Lily all competed first on 1m. In C Female (12/13 years), Sophia claimed the silver on 178.85 and Florence the bronze on 172.15. In D Female (10/11 years), Libby was runner-up on 123.35 and Lily won the event on 135.30. Alex competed next in the A Open (16/18 years) 3m, winning the event by almost a 30-point margin on 289.40. In the platform events that followed Tegan was fourth in A Female on 219.40. In C Female, Sophia claimed the gold on 187.60 and Florence a bronze on 164.05. In D Female, Lily took the gold on 122.15 and Libby the silver on 119.55. The day ended with Tegan competing in the A Female 1m event, claiming the gold on a score of 255.05.
Day two began with Alex competing first in the A Open 1m event, taking the silver on 252.25. Sophia won the C Female 3m event on 195.80 and Florence was fifth on 168.55. In the D Female 3m, Libby took the silver on 130.90 and Lily won the event on 136.15. With a final haul of two bronze, five silver and seven golds it was a very successful weekend for our team in Southend.

The detailed results are available here.

East Region Skills 2024
Congratulations to our team of 13 divers who competed at the East Region skills competition in Southend.
This was the first opportunity for our divers to try to qualify for this year's National Skills Finals to be held in mid-July, in Southend.
Five of our team medalled here – four of whom hit the qualification standard. Our other team members were either stepping up to regional level for the first time or moving up an age band, gaining precious experience and looking to improve upon their performances at the next regional qualifier.
Pollyanna got the team off to a super start by winning the E – Female (8/9) event as a ‘guest’ on 276.70.  In Group D (10/11), Elodie came ninth as a ‘guest’ in the female category on 236.75 and Barnabas was ‘guest’ fifth on 231.65 in the open category.
In the C - Female (12/13) event, widely acknowledged as the toughest age band in which to qualify due to its sheer size and high qualification standard, we had six divers compete.
Martha claimed a ‘guest’ bronze on 266.30 and further along the pecking order Lucia scored 258.10, Sophie 252.35, Willa 250.50, Jamie 232.45 and Lara 225.35.
In B – Female (14/15), the last session of the day, it ended with a one, two and three on the podium for our divers. Mable scored 257.85, Amy-Jules claimed a ‘guest’ bronze on 297.75, Scarlet a ‘guest’ silver on 302.55 and Isla a 'guest' gold and was the overall winner on 332.60.
This year’s qualification standards for female and open are: Group E – 240, Group D – 255, Group C – 270, Group B – 265, Group A – 170 (1m) and 175 (3m).
The detailed results are available here.

Armada Cup 2024
Well done to our team of eight divers who travelled to the South West to compete at this year's Armada Cup competition.
Hosted by Plymouth Diving Club at the Plymouth Life Centre, this four-day open club meet features events for age group and elite junior divers.
The top six from the morning and lunchtime prelims went through to the finals later in the day. A few events here were run as straight finals.
On the first day of competition, Alex got the team off to a great start by winning the Group A (16/18) open age group 3m on 294.70. In the Group B (14/15) open age group 3m, Leo was fifth in the prelim on 236.05 and took the bronze in the final on 112.80. In the Group D (9/11) female age group platform, Lily came third in the prelim on 144.00 and claimed bronze in the final on 84.20. Tegan won both the prelim and the final of the Group A female age group 1m, scoring 279.15 and 110.95 respectively.
Day two began with Alex competing in the Group A open age group 1m, claiming the silver on a score of 268.35. In the Group B open age group 1m, Leo was ninth in the prelim on 212.75. In the Group A female age group platform, Tegan came fourth in the prelim on 219.65 and went on to take the bronze in the final on 108.10. In the Group C (12/13) female age group 1m, Sophia was second in the prelim on 196.30 and finished sixth in the final on 64.20. Florence came 20th in the prelim on 148.00. In the Group B/A (14/18) open 3m synchro, Alex paired up with Max Goodwin (Dive London) and claimed the silver on 193.14. In the same event, Leo teamed up with Luke Raggett (Dive London) and came fourth on 189.12.
Day three started with Caitlin competing in the Group A female elite junior 3m event, coming 16th in the prelim on 283.90. In the Group B open age group platform, Leo was seventh in the prelim on 194.95. In the Group C female age group platform, Sophia was second in the prelim on 188.35 and won the final on 124.30. Florence ranked ninth in the prelim on 163.50. In the Group D female age group 3m, Libby was second in the prelim on 144.45 and Lily fourth on 132.40. Lily won the final on 101.60 and Libby came fourth on 83.70.
On the last day, Sophia and Florence competed first in the Group C female age group 3m. Sophia was second in the prelim on 185.10 and took the bronze in the final on 98.80. Florence came ninth in the prelim on 158.30. In the Group A female elite junior 1m, Caitlin ranked 14th in the prelim on 297.85 (which was inside the 1m entry standard). In the Group D female age group 1m, Libby was third in the prelim on 139.90 and Lily fourth on 131.25. In the final, Lily claimed the bronze on 84.60 and Libby was a whisker behind her in fourth on 84.45. Ending four busy days of competition, Sophia and Florence paired up for the Group D/C (9/13) female 1m synchro and claimed the silver on 173.46.
The detailed results are available here.

Gavin Brown Love To Dive 2024

Congratulations to our team of 16 divers who competed at this year's Gavin Brown Love To Dive competition at the Quays in Southampton.

With medals up for grabs to the top six in each event, more than half our team here made their way to the podium afterwards. Each event featured six rounds of dives: three from 1m and three from 3m.

In E Female (8/9 years), Pollyanna and Lucy got the team off to a good start by coming fourth (145.60) and sixth respectively (127.80).
In D Female (10/11 years), Elodie claimed the gold on 149.75. In D Open, Oliver won the event on 152.80 and Barnabas was fifth on 132.15.

In C Female (12/13 years), the biggest event of the competition with 29 divers, Sophie was fourth on 159.55 and Lucia sixth on 155.75. Martha came eighth on 152.45, Willa 12th on 146.80, Jamie 13th on 145.90, Emily 27th on 114.00 and Louisa – who has just moved up to novice squad – 28th on 112.55.
In B+ Female (14/16 years), Mable claimed the bronze on 170.75, Amy-Jules was fifth on 163.10 and Katarina came eighth on 143.10. James won the B+ Open event on 168.40.
The competition is named in memory of Gavin Brown, a former City of Leeds Diving Club and Southampton Diving Academy diver who died aged 22 following a hit-and-run incident in 2007.

The detailed results are available here.

Surrey Diving Skills 2024
Well done to our team of 17 divers who got the new year competition programme underway with some great performances and results at the Surrey County ASA skills competition at Guildford Spectrum.
Some of our divers here have only just moved up to squad level and were representing the club ‘externally’ for the first time.
Lucy got the team off to a solid start in the first session by winning E Female (8/9 years) on 141.70. Also competing in session one was Elodie, who claimed the gold in D Female (10/11 years) on 148.95.
In session two, Barnabas won D Open (10/11 years) on 147.75 and Oliver Blandford-Gange took the Surrey silver on 130.90. Meanwhile Oliver Halliday won the Surrey gold in the C Open (12/13 years) on 135.40.
In C Female (12/13 years), the biggest event of the meet with 24 divers, the results were split afterwards into C1 (12 years) and C2 (13 years). In C1, Lucia claimed the Surrey gold on 135.35 and Emily took the Surrey silver on 127.60. In C2, it was one, two and three on the podium for our divers. Willa claimed gold on 146.30, Jamie the silver on 145.70 and Martha a bronze on 144.85.

In the fourth and final session, which featured Group B (14/15 years) and Group A (16/18 years), it was another one, two and three on the podium for our team. In B Female, Amy-Jules won the event on 149.80, Katarina claimed the silver on 140.25 and Mable the bronze on 138.30. Riley, who has just moved up to novice squad, was fourth on 126.45. In B Open, Eddison claimed a Surrey gold on 117.45. In Group A, Ava won the Surrey gold in the female category on 129.15 and James the gold in the open category on 138.90.

Any idea who from our team got the highest 'raw score' in the competition (three judges' scores added together, before being multiplied by the degree of difficulty)? Amy-Jules scored 25.50 for an impressive V-sit hold on poolside. Emily was right behind her, scoring 25.00 for her pike jump from poolside.

There was friendly competition from outside Surrey this year from 'guests' Amersham Swimming Club, Havering Cormorants Diving Club, Luton Diving Club, Maidstone Diving Team and Tunbridge Wells Diving Club.

The detailed results are available here.

Peter Waterfield Novice Invitational 2023

Well done to our team of six divers who competed at the Peter Waterfield Novice Invitational at the Quays in Southampton.
The day-long meet attracted nine clubs this year, with medals awarded to the top six girls and boys in each event.
Two-thirds of our team finished in the top 10 of their events, with half of the divers collecting medals afterwards.
In E Girls (8/9 years), Pollyanna came fifth on a score of 258.80. In D Girls (10/11 years), Sophie scored 250.70 and came 12th. In C Girls (12/13 years), Katarina was 17th on 236.90 and Abigail came fourth on 267.55 – only 0.25 of a point behind third place. In the B+ Girls (16/16 years), Isla came ninth on 252.45 and Scarlet finished fourth on 290.65. The detailed results are available here.

Swim England Talent Games 2023
Congratulations to our three divers – Libby, Florence and Lily – who competed at this year's Swim England Talent Games.
The competition, held at the John Charles Centre for Sport in Leeds, involved the divers competing across a variety of dry-land and pool-based activities over two days.
Dry land comprised three elements – a floor routine, dry boards and physical competition – testing power, speed and control.
In the pool the divers performed a number of skills, dives and forward and back line-ups from the 1m and 3m springboards and 3m platform.
On dry land, Florence was fifth on 102.14, Lily came 13th on 85.17 and Libby ranked 17th on 75.89. In the pool, Florence was sixth on 210.75, Lily came eighth on 206.50 and Libby was just behind her in ninth on 205.90.
In the overall results, Florence ranked fourth on 172.39, Lily came 11th on 154.00 and Libby was 14th on 144.52. The Talent Games are open to divers who are 11 years and under at year end, and serves as the selection event for the Swim England Diving Team Z squad. Florence was subsequently selected onto the Team Z squad for 2024-25. The simple results are available here.

National Skills Finals 2023
Congratulations to our team of seven divers who competed at this year’s National Skills Finals, marking the close of the English national competition programme for another season.
Hosted for the second year running by the North East Region at the John Charles Centre for Sport in Leeds, the meet saw 235 divers - which included a number of guests from Scotland – compete for honours across two busy days.
Our team size here was one less than last year, with only two divers having competed at this competition in 2022. Nonetheless, we came away with some impressive results: a gold, a silver, three divers scoring personal bests and all of them finishing in the top half of their events.
Libby and Lily competed first on day one in D1 Girls (10 years), finishing first on 317.55 and second on 311.40 respectively. Florence competed next in D2 Girls (11 years), coming fourth on 295.00 – only five points behind the bronze. Abigail was last to compete on day one, finishing ninth in C2 Girls (13 years) on 261.45.
Day two began with Pollyanna competing in E Girls (8/9 years), who finished twelfth on a personal-best score of 267.60. Isla and Scarlet competed in the last event of day two, B+ Girls (14/16 years), which was the largest of the weekend with 44 competitors. Isla finished 17th on 268.15 and Scarlet came 21st on 263.45.

Big thanks to our volunteer chaperones, Lottie and Annika, and our coaches, Laura and Kirsty, for making it an enjoyable weekend team trip in Leeds.
The detailed results are available here.