Powell High School girls’ diving coach Heather Christensen helped local divers build up their basic skills during a week-long camp at the end of July, giving the athletes an opportunity to get in the water and on the board late in the summer.

“A lot of what we worked on are skills that can be built on,” Christensen said. “I hope they learned the importance of these skills to help them as they progress in their skills and move into more difficult dives.”

Several athletes took advantage of getting on the board, as Christensen even welcomed in a pair of Powell Middle School divers looking to get more experience.

Experience is difficult to come by at times for younger divers around Powell, as athletes are unable to compete right away once they reach middle school.

“It is exciting to give the middle schoolers an extra opportunity for them to work on their diving skills,” Christensen said. “We are one of the few schools that don’t allow sixth graders to compete in the water. This is more access to time on the board.”

With such a young group, she said they were able to work on the basics to approaches, wanting the athletes to commit that movement to their memories until it became second nature once they reach competition.

“Our main focus was on approaches. I want the divers to have their approach be muscle memory,” Christensen said. “That way when the pressure is on during competition, it is one less thing to have to focus on.”

Older camp-goers have had the opportunity to hit the board with the start of the high school season, while younger athletes will have to wait until winter for their chance in competition.