Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, August 17, 2022: The Olympic Council of Asia’s popular development youth camp is about much more than improving the basic skills and technique of the young athletes at the beginning of their sporting journey.
It is about contributing to society as a whole by bringing together athletes and coaches from all five zones of the OCA in pursuit of the three main Olympic values of excellence, friendship and respect.
Evidence of this could be seen clearly on the third afternoon of the seven-day camp at the National Aquatic Centre in Bukit Jalil on Wednesday.
Delegations from Kazakhstan, Iraq and Qatar posed together for souvenir photos outside the dryland gym; female athletes from Sri Lanka and Thailand struck up a friendship that looks like it will be long-lasting; and athletes were given - and respectfully accepted - advice by coaches from other countries as they all tried to help each other.
Compare this to the first day of the camp on Monday, when the delegations pretty much stuck to each other and didn’t quite have the confidence to mix among athletes from other countries speaking a different language.
By Wednesday afternoon, all these social barriers had been broken down and the gathering of 28 athletes aged 13 and under from 15 National Olympic Committees resembled one big group – working together.
From the perspective of the OCA and the Olympic movement in general, this diving youth camp had already achieved one of its major goals – with four days remaining and several more activities lined up.
The same kind of environment could be felt pool side as well as inside the dryland gym. After three intense sessions on the mats, trampolines and springboards in the dryland gym, the confidence of the divers had grown considerably since day one as they looked much more assured and far from shy to try their own techniques on the variety of springboards and platforms in the main diving pool.
The standard of the young divers varies considerably, especially with six athletes from Malaysia’s national development squad taking part and looking to follow in the footsteps of recent world champions and Olympic Games medal-winners. But none of this mattered as the kids knuckled down to give it their best shot, and earn plaudits from fellow athletes and coaches alike.
Chief instructor Shannon Roy from Australia knows the Asian scene quite well, having worked as national coach in Singapore before his current role with Thailand, and clearly possesses the communicative skills to get his ideas across to the coaches and athletes.
By the time they are ready to say their farewells on Sunday evening, prepare for tears for souvenirs until they meet again – hopefully in international competition with the lessons they have learned and perfected here at the OCA diving youth camp.
