Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, August 14, 2022: Australian diving coach Shannon Roy has set the scene for the Olympic Council of Asia’s Asian Diving Youth Camp in Kuala Lumpur from August 14-21.
The seven-day camp kicks off on Monday, August 15 and will feature 28 young athletes from 15 National Olympic Committees representing all five zones of the OCA.
But the aim of the camp is not only to lay solid foundations for the young divers, it is also to create a sporting synergy between the 15 diving coaches and 17 judges who will also be in attendance.
In other words, the judges will inform the coaches exactly what they are looking for in marking individual or synchronized dives, while the coaches will understand the elements that are not critical in gaining a high score in the overall judging process.
It all adds up to a win-win-win situation for athletes, coaches and judges alike over the coming seven days, which will end with a competition focusing on different aspects of the technical and aesthetic elements of the sport.
“I am really hoping to give the divers and the coaches some excitement about developing foundations the right way and building the right steps for the future,” said the Adelaide-born Roy, 45.
“Take time at the beginning and wait for it to flourish at the end,” he added. “This is about building foundations – and then sky rocket later.”
Roy, who won a gold medal for Australia in the men’s 3m springboard at the 16th Commonwealth Games 1998 in Malaysia, is currently the national coach of Thailand, having held the same role previously with Singapore and Scotland.
He has also worked in the United States, Britain and Sweden as well as his home country Australia, so he can bring a lot of experience and expertise as lead instructor for the OCA camp.
Regarding the strength of diving in south-east Asia, he acknowledges that Malaysia dominates, Singapore is rising and both Vietnam and Thailand are starting to close the gap, but he would like to see further development.
“I want to see the other countries challenging; I want to see a diving team from Laos and Cambodia. I want to encourage and inspire the smaller diving countries to push for more growth in their own country. I want to see diving thrive and grow.”
The week-long camp will be packed with theory and practical sessions, in a dry land diving gym before entering the pool each day, that will benefit all three parties. “One of the key points that FINA, the OCA and myself are looking for is getting them working together. It’s a working relationship,” Roy added.
The OCA has reached out to all NOCs, and has been rewarded with male participants from Iran, Iraq, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Lebanon as well as female and male athletes from the more established diving countries.
The Asian Diving Youth Camp is being organised by the OCA, FINA, the IOC’s Olympic Solidarity, the Olympic Council of Malaysia and Malaysia Swimming.