Most of the time, the Thunder Bay Diving Club sees a boost in interest and people wanting to try the sport after they see it during the Summer Olympics every four years.
So when the coaching staff looked over the numbers for their fall sessions, it was a pleasant surprise that they had 35 participants taking part.
“Honestly, I was shocked when I learned we’d have that many people coming out,” senior coach Kamryn Knapton said.
“I think this is some of the highest numbers I’ve seen us have in a very long time,” senior coach Danielle Smith added. “It is definitely the most we’ve had since COVID, as there was a time where we had gone down to 10 athletes that were training with us.”
While the club has benefited from being promoted more over the last year – especially with the exploits of former member and current Red Bull Cliff Diving Series competitor Molly Carlson – Knapton feels the boost in interest comes from old-fashioned word of mouth.
“I tell our divers to tell their friends about us and they end up doing that and that brings in more people here,” Knapton added.
“We’re very open to having kids just come in and giving diving a try,” Smith said. “This isn’t a sport that you hear a lot about and when kids want to give a shot, we’re more than happy to make accommodations for them.”
The Thunder Bay Diving Club has traditionally run competitive and recreational diving programs during the course of the year.
That’s changing slightly in 2024 with learn to dive, recreational, pre-competitive and competitive programs taking place.
The new layout is part of initiatives put in place by head coach Rolando Prieto, who returned to Thunder Bay this fall after working with clubs in Gatineau, Que., Nepean and Ottawa.
Prieto was born in Cuba and dove there until he was 16. He then moved to Mexico and coached there for 17 years.
“Rolando’s got a lot of experience, especially with coaching athletes who have gotten to very high levels,” Knapton said. “It’s awesome for our divers to get to work with someone like that.
“He wants to show off our club. We want to expand and bring more people in, whether you have diving experience or not.”
“It’s been amazing having Rolando here,” Smith added. “Not only is he helping our divers improve, but us coaches are getting better by being around him. We all want to get to the levels that he has been at.”
The next major event for the Thunder Bay Diving Club is a fun meet at the Canada Games Complex on Saturday at 10 a.m.
The competition that everyone is looking forward to though is the Ontario Winter Games, which is taking place from Feb. 16-19 at the Complex and is expected to feature athletes from Toronto, Ottawa and London clubs among others.
Knapton expects that event to bring a lot of eyeballs to the sport, especially from people who aren’t as familiar with it.
“Diving is a very pretty sport and it’s really cool to watch,” Knapton added. “People just go ‘wow’ when they see the dives in person and they are just captivated by it.
“The Winter Games will also be a big deal for our young divers as well. We try to explain to them just what those big competitions are like, but it’s really hard to do until you see it in person.”
The next sessions for the Thunder Bay Diving Club run from Jan. 8 to March 26.
Registration forms and more information on the club can be found on their website and by visiting their Facebook page.