World University Games 2005

WARNING: This entry is going to be a little lengthy. I was unable to post journal entries at the World Championships so I am going to give a brief overview on that and then talk about the World University Games so far.

A few weeks ago I competed in the 2005 Aquatic World Championships in Montreal, Canada. Overall I did a decent job. I competed in 10 meter individual and 10 meter synchronized diving with Laura Wilkinson. This was Laura’s and my first competition diving together. After prelims we were sitting in third place, but after finals we dropped finishing in fifth. It was a great time diving with Laura, we had a lot of fun and hopefully we will be competing more together in the future. A few days after the synchronized event I competed in 10 meter individual. This was my first time competing individually at World Championships. I finished in fifteenth place. I did not dive as well as I hoped, but I learned a lot about myself as a competitor and found things that I need to work at. Overall, I was pleased with how I did, but by no means was I satisfied.
As a team, the USA divers did a great job. We brought a lot of younger divers with less experience who showed that they all have potential for greatness. After watching what my competition is doing I am really motivated to have a few months away from competitions where I can really focus on my training.

Two weeks later and mow I am in Izmir, Turkey for the World University Games. I attended this event back in 2003 where my then synchronized diving partner, Sara Hildebrand, where we placed third on 10 meter synchronized. I am back here two years later competing 10 meter individual and 10 meter synchronized with Indiana diver Christina Loukas. We have been here for three days now and I have another day till I start competing. Izmir is a beautiful city that is situated on the coast of the Aegean Sea and surrounded by massive hills and small mountains. The climate on the other hand is not as nice. It is very hot here hence I am continually sweating through my shirts, I know this is disgusting, but hey, it’s a fact of life! Luckily our apartment is air conditioned!
All athletes at this event are staying in an athlete village that was built on a small mountain. It is a brand new, beautiful little town that has a food cafeteria, a fitness center, laundry services, computer access, and shops all available a short walk away. The only issue with this village is having to walk up and down the mountain whenever we go anywhere. As you may imagine, this makes my legs very sore, even for someone in shape. But the good part is that I am not the only person here that has to deal with it, everyone does.
The U.S. Diving team consists of five women and five men. To be eligible for this competition the diver must currently be enrolled in college or have graduated within the last year. So we are all college students and everyone is a lot of fun. There are some new divers here that I have not traveled with before so it’s exciting to get to know some new people.
There are some great divers here so the competition should be very exhilarating. I am really excited about being able to compete in this awesome event and represent the U.S. with pride and dignity. Today was women’s one meter where Allison Brennan had a great performance finishing fourth and our men’s three-meter synchronized diving team, consisting of Chris Colwill and Stewart Smith, finished ninth. Not a bad start for the first day…