By Astara March, Water Citizen staff writer
The Shinholser brothers - Colby, Logan, and TJ - have big
dreams about diving in Rio de Janeiro at the summer Olympics in 2016, and they
just might make it.
Logan participated in the Olympic trials this year but
didn't qualify for the team. He expects
that to be different next time.
All three say that diving gives them a sense of being part
of something bigger than themselves and the thought of going to the Olympics to
represent their country makes things really exciting.
"It's funny, because it's a small sport compared to
swimming," Logan told Water Citizen. "Everyone knows everyone else
and is really nice, like a big family that helps each other all the time. Even at a high-pressure event, we all hang
out together. It's not
testosterone-driven like swimming or wrestling."
Preparing for the Olympics by diving in college is a
time-honored path. All three brothers
trust their coaches to mold them into world-class competitors. Logan's college had five people in the
Olympic trials this year. He said you
qualify by participating in the finals of a national event, which in his case
was the NCAA championships in Los Angeles in 2011.
The brothers followed their older sister Amanda into
gymnastics, realized it wasn't for them, and switched to diving. Logan is an individual and synchronized
10-meter "tower" diver but his brothers are 3-meter springboard
specialists. TJ stuck to springboard
because the injury rate is lower.
"The 10-meter divers hit the water going 35 mph," said
Logan. "The injury rate for tower
is really high. It's easier to calm your
fears on springboard."
The beauty of the sport effectively hides its health
risks. The brothers told Water Citizen
that those risks start with breathing the chlorine used by most places to
disinfect their public pools. UVA where
Colby goes to school has a chlorine system but Virginia Tech, Logan's school,
has an ultraviolet sterilization system that cuts down the chlorine exposure considerably. So do all the pools used for Olympic events
in London.
The most significant risk comes from the impact of hitting
the water over and over again during training.
"Water is hard when you hit it from high up," said Logan.
"Even if you do everything right, it hurts. Springboard may send you up to 7 meters and
tower is 10 meters. You have to grab
your hands so the impact falls on them and they make a little pocket in the
water for you to go through. If you
don't, you take the impact on your head and can get a concussion."
Other divers Water Citizen interviewed talked about neck,
shoulder, and back injuries and commented on the kinesiotape you can see on the
Olympic divers to help them power through the pain.
Olympic venues are designed to both allow as many people as
possible to view the events and to make sure they are comfortable while doing
so. "The Olympic venue in London is
huge," said Logan. "There's a
diving well, then two 50-meter pools, then a warm-down pool. That means it's not steamy like most pools
and the spectators are happy. It's so
big it's like diving outdoors with a roof over you."
Logan said that the swimming pools will have cooler water
than the diving well. "It's easier to swim in colder water," he told
Water Citizen, "but diving pools can be any temperature you like."
All three are aiming for the 2016 Olympics in Rio if their
coaches think they have a chance. They
are currently college students juggling full schedules with the 20 hour per
week commitment of competitive diving.
Colby and Logan are in engineering, which means diving in
the early morning and studying late into the night. Colby also has ROTC to contend with. "I don't envy him at all," said
Logan, "but he'll figure it out.
He's really good at time management." TJ says he is more academic and less focused
on diving than his brothers and that's fine with him.
All three have the support of their family and their
teammates at their respective schools.
We wish them the very best.
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