RAF Diving Gets a Spring in its Step

Mar 09

The RAF Diving Team preparations for the 2009 Inter Services got underway with the added lift of a new 1 metre springboard. The new board was purchased with a grant from The Nuffield Trust for Forces of The Crown, and was installed at RAF Cranwell, the home for sport of the RAF Swimming Association.

To celebrate the arrival of the new board the RAF Team invited local diving club, The Lincoln Imps, to come along and participate in a training session with the squad. The Lincoln Imps cover all age groups, and the opportunity to visit RAF Cranwell, and try out the facilities were too good to be missed. The facilities at Cranwell also boast a 3 metre and 5 metre firmboard, this is something the Imps do not have access to at their home pool at Yarborough.

The Imps coach Rosanna Townsend was very impressed with the way in which they were hosted, and the time taken by the RAF squad to introduce highboard to the Imps divers. Some of the Lincoln divers have since gone on to compete successfully on firmboard. In all a very successful event, and a bond has now been forged between Lincoln Imps and RAF Diving, with squad members now training with the Imps in between RAF Fixtures. It is hoped these exchanges can become a regular fixture in the RAF season.

Thank you to The Nuffield Trust for Forces of The Crown, for their kind generosity. The squad are making good progress, and with the improved facilities and coaching from WO Danny Downs and Sgt Nev Davies, look forward to competing against the Army and Navy at the Inter Services Championships in July.

GBDF Spring Masters 2009- Leeds

Apr 09

On Friday 17 April, a group of RAF Divers made the journey north to Leeds to compete in the Great Britain Diving Federation (GBDF), spring masters championships. For all this was to be their first taste of competition outside the military.

The diving pool was available for training from 1800-2000, this allows the divers to get used to the different boards and the surroundings. This is very important to a diver, as most dives are executed using visual references to determine various body positions and kick out points. Arriving at the John Charles Centre for sport Aquatics Centre in good time allowed the team to meet some of the personalities involved within GBDF. Not only were there competitors from the UK, but teams from Netherlands, Germany and Hungary also took part.

Sat 18 Apr

The team arrived for warm up bright and early, and within minutes we had coaches from various clubs expressing an interest in us and welcoming us into the competition fold. All the coaches and staff from GBDF were always on hand to assist and provide advice and support to us who were very welcome and well received by the squad.

First to compete was Kev in the Novice 3m springboard 30-49 age group. After a nervous start, Kev soon settled into his set and ended with an inward 1 ½ somersault with a tariff of 2.0, the maximum allowed in the novice group. After a very close run event, Kev finished in 1st place, with divers from Amersham diving club taking the other podium places.

Liz was next up, in the Novice 1m springboard 16-29 age group. In a very competitive group, Liz displayed some impressive dives including a very neat straight back somersault and a tidy forward 1 ½ with tuck. Some very nice sets were put together by several competitors in this section and Liz came away with a very creditable 4th place.

Kev was to make his second appearance of the day, this time in the 5m platform event of the same age group. All the competitors in this event had already battled it out in the 3m, so there was a slight psychological advantage for Kev. Taking onboard the tips and advice given earlier in the morning, a very neat set was put together and included his back 1 ½ somersault. The podium this time was to be shared by the same three. Kev taking his second gold of the event, with Amersham Divers taking 2nd and 3rd.

Sun 19 Apr

Another early start at the pool for the final training session of the weekend.

To kick off the RAF involvement today was Kev in the 1m springboard 29-39 group. A few new divers turned up for this event, so the trio of medallists from Saturday had more to do. A slow start from Kev, however his reverse dive was the best he’d done and scored 32.8 points putting him into second place with the final round to go. His last dive a forward 1 ½ somersault wasn’t the best but was it enough? The scores were read out, and by the narrowest of margins, 0.15 of a point, Kev took his third gold of the weekend.

Charlotte made her competitive debut in the 3m springboard, 16-29 age group. Displaying a steady performance, and scoring well with her back straight ½ twist. Obviously enjoying the experience, Charlotte’ scores kept her at the right end of the field. Unfortunately just missing out on a podium finish Charlotte was placed in 4th .

The next event was to put two of the RAF divers against each other Charlotte and Lauren would battle it out, this time on 5m platform. Again two really competitive sets put in by both girls, and Lauren’s reverse dive worthy of a mention. This is when you face forward, jump and rotate backwards towards the board. This dive takes a lot of nerve as your head is very close to a slab of concrete 5m up. However both girls were to finish outside the medals, Charlotte 5th and Lauren 6th. This event was to mark the end of the RAF involvement in the weekend.

The event proved a great success for the divers involved and RAF diving in general. Many new friends made both home and abroad, and a few new doors were opened to RAF Diving. It is hoped to include GBDF events as permanent fixtures in the RAF diving season.

Thanks must go to Russ Preece, from Sheffield, and Anne Murray of GBDF for their time and patience in coaching us over the weekend. Sam Jeffries the Army number 1 for his tips and humour. Sgt Maj Walker and the troops at Churchill Barracks TA Centre for their hospitality.

Special thanks to BAE Systems for their continued support of RAF Diving,

The Team

Chf Tech Kev Davidson RAF Waddington (manager)

Fg Off Liz Herbert RAF Cranwell

SAC Charlotte Bennett RAF Benson

Off Cdt Lauren Stewart YUAS RAF Church Fenton

Civil Service Sports Council- Centenary Invitational Championships

8th May 2009

The Civil Service Sports Council Amateur Swimming Association (CSSC ASA) celebrated its centenary year during 2009. To commemorate this occasion, an invitation was extended to each of the armed forces swimming association dive teams, and the police swimming association dive team to take part in an open invitational diving competition at Ponds Forge, Sheffield. This was the brainchild of the CSSC ASA Honorary Diving Representative, and former RAFSA Diving Coach, Ms Anne Murray.

So early Friday morning, 5 members of the RAF Squad packed their swimsuits, and headed north towards Sheffield. On arrival at Ponds Forge, the teams were met by Ms Murray, and the format of the competition explained and the timings discussed. This time also gave the RAF Team a chance to catch up with our Army counterparts, and chew the fat over the recent Inter Services event. The diving pool was then made available for some training, and time allocated for the competitors to complete their dive sheets prior to competition.

The event was divided into 8 separate competitions, both male and female open events on springboard and highboard, as well as novice events on springboard and highboard.

First to compete from the RAF squad, were, Cpl Spenny Fielding, and SAC Richard Ellender in the men’s Novice springboard. Both divers performed well, and in the end were split on the podium by Bry Lingard of the CSSC. Spenny taking gold, with Richard finishing in bronze.

Next up for the RAF, were the ladies in the Open springboard. SAC Sally Monk and SAC Charlotte Bennett were up against Inter Service winner Amanda Prentice from the Army. Again both RAF divers put in a very competitive set of dives and performed well. Sally finishing in silver, with Charlotte taking bronze.

To finish off the springboard competition, RAF team manager Chf Tech Kev Davidson was up in the men’s Open. A very competitive field had Kev up against both Army divers, and two very good divers from the Civil Service. Following a reasonable set, Kev unfortunately failed his last dive, a back 1 ½ somersault, landing in an unorthodox manner. The word ‘pancake’ was heard to be mentioned!! Kev brought up the rear in 5th place.

After another 30 minutes of warm up, it was up the tower for the start of the highboard events. For military events, competition is generally on the 5 metre highboard. However, with Ponds Forge having one of the best diving facilities in the country, all boards were available for this competition, 5, 7.5 and 10 metre.

First up this time was Sally, in the ladies Novice highboard. This matched Sally up against Anne Murray, in a battle of teacher versus student. Once again Sally put together a very good set, but the experience of Anne saw her just pipping Sally by 10 points. Another silver for Sally.

Next up in the men’s novice highboard was Spenny. Another good performance, with a safe set from the 5 metre board. Both Civil service divers also put in some very nice dives, scoring well, pushing Spenny down into bronze.

The ladies open highboard was down to Army versus RAF. Charlotte was to challenge Amanda on her own. A really good set from Charlotte that shown a wide variety of dives, and the progress made by her over the past year. Amanda however displayed her full set from different heights, winning comfortably in the end. Charlotte adding a silver to her earlier bronze.

Last up on highboard, were the men’s open event with Richard and Kev going it against the Army lads and Mike from the Civil service. This was to prove a very competitive event with all the divers pushing as hard as they could. All the boards were utilised during this set of dives, and some very good scores were obtained. In the end it was Kev to come away empty handed missing out on bronze by 0.25 of a point on 155.30., with Richard finishing just behind.

In all, the event proved a resounding success for everyone involved, and in particular the members of the RAF squad, bringing home a tally of, 1 gold, 3 silver and 3 bronze. The hard work and training put in by these individuals, was evident in the quality and variety of diving performed.

The event also gave the RAF Team an opportunity to strengthen its relationships with the Army Dive team and forge new friendships within the Civil Service Swimming Association. Everyone departed Ponds Forge eager to hear if another event is to be held next year.

The Team

Chf Tech Kev Davidson RAF Waddington Team Manager

Cpl Spenny Fielding RAF Waddington

SAC Richard Ellender RAF Waddington

SAC Sally Monk RAF Coningsby

SAC Charlotte Bennett RAF Benson

Nordic Light Masters Diving Competition- Stockholm

Jul 09

RAFSA Diving team manager, CT Kev Davidson, packed his trunks and headed over the north sea to Stockholm. The intention was to participate in the first ever Nordic Light Masters Diving Competition. The event is hosted by the Stockholm Polisens Dive Club, and was the brainchild of one of its members after visiting a UK Masters event. The idea was to hold the event during the long summer days to allow competitors to both participate and explore the city of Stockholm.

The aquatics centre in Stockholm was built to host the European Championships, and boasts a competition pool and separate diving training facility. Arriving on the Friday evening from Heathrow, Kev and his partner got their bearings, and began exploring this beautiful city.

Saturday morning was dedicated to training and making good use of the facilities. It was also an opportunity to spread the word about RAF Diving, and meet some of the characters involved in the Scandinavian diving scene. The event attracted competitors from Norway, Finland, Holland, Italy and Hungary as well as a single diver from Ireland.

In a bid to develop his dive list Kev had entered the open Masters Highboard, and the 3m Springboard. Both events went well, but unfortunately Kev failed to pull off his last dive on highboard and slipped into second place after leading the competition. In the Springboard event however, the clear Swedish air must have influenced his performance and Kev came away with gold, finishing in first place.

A really enjoyable event, and hosted very well by the members of Polisens Dive Club. Many new friends were made as well as future arrangements to meet up in Seville for the European Masters.

GBDF SUMMER MASTERS – Manchester

Aug 09

The Great Britain DivinghFederation (GBDF), summer masters diving competition, were held at the Aquatics Centre in Manchester. Unfortunately due to prior commitments, and a number of RAF Divers being deployed, the only representation was SAC Charlotte Bennett of RAF Benson.

Despite travelling alone, Charlotte had some family support, as for the first time Charlotte was competing on home turf. This must have given Charlotte a boost, her performance in both highboard and springboard, were exceptional.

In the springboard event, Charlotte put together an excellent set of dives, which she performed well to finish in first place. This was by far her best performance, and had her clear of second place by over twenty points, gaining her first medal in masters novice competition.

In the high board event, another good performance from Charlotte. A very competitive group, and some excellent diving from the ladies. Only ten points covering the top five, with Charlotte finishing in fourth place. A sound performance from Charlotte, gaining the rewards for the hard work she has put in.

LEN European Masters 2009- Seville

Sept 09

Back in January at the RAFSA AGM, taking over as RAFSA Diving Manger, Chf Tech Kev Davidson expressed an interest in taking a group of RAF Divers to the European Masters Championships. The event was due to be held during September, in Seville, Spain. This trip was intended as part of the development plan and a means of providing a tour opportunity for the squad. At the time of suggesting it, September seemed so far away.

However on the 12 September, five members of the RAF diving squad were standing at Stansted airport ready to board the flight to Seville.

Saturday 12

After getting together at Stansted, the next challenge was to meet up with the rest of the Great Britain Diving Federation(GBDF), travelling party, and collecting our tracksuits. Although diving individually for the Royal Air Force, as members of the GBDF, we were also representing Great Britain! Who would have thought eight months previous at the AGM, RAF divers would be part of team GB? Formalities out of the way, security cleared, we sat on board the Ryanair flight to Seville.

On arrival in Seville, it was quickly into the taxis and off to the hotel. Team GB were split between two hotels, and as the RAF squad had already formed a relationship with Sheffield Divers, we were collocated with them along with our appointed coach Russ Preece. At the hotel, admin squared away, the team were given rooms and told to assemble for a team meeting. Having met a few of the Dutch team previously at UK events we were pleased to find they were also accommodated at our hotel. It seemed only right to celebrate our arrival in Spain and meeting some old friends, with a light liquid supper.

Sunday 13

No rest for the wicked! It was an early start today. Firstly we had to go to the competition pool, sort out our accreditations, and take care of the admin required to compete in the competition. Unfortunately, due to the restrictions in place only three of the travelling RAF divers were there to compete, SAC Carrie Blyth (new to the squad) and SAC Charlotte Bennett(too young to compete), had travelled purely to take advantage of the training opportunity. The pool was located at the San Pablo Sports Centre, approx 15 minutes from the hotel, and was an open air facility. For all of the RAF squad this was the first time any of us had dived outdoors, a new experience, and with the Seville climate, a very pleasant experience.

The team took full advantage of the time at the pool and as well as our coach Russ, there were several other coaches present with their competitors, and help and advice were readily available. The atmosphere around the pool was very friendly, there seemed to be an air of respect for everyone. The ability of divers varied from ex Olympians to those of us that just had enough dives to qualify for the event. Russ concentrated on getting everyone through their respective sets and also introduced a few new dives to each of us. A short break for lunch, get some fluids inside as well as a chance to get out of the sun. It is surprising how tired you get climbing up those towers all day. After a seven hour day it was decided to knock it on the head for the day, and visit Seville for some well earned dinner.

Monday 14

Today was much the same as the previous day, an early start, pool side for 0900 ready to go. A wise decision, as by around lunch several of the European federations had arrived and the pool became very busy. Effort of the day has to go to Carrie Blyth, who after almost twenty face-plants manage to get a forward 1 ½ somersault from the 1m board. Her efforts and determination to make it happen had not gone un-noticed by those other federations on poolside, and got the loudest cheer of all as she came to the surface. This show of camaraderie and respect was to set the scene for the week to come. It was decided that the rest of the afternoon be set aside for some tourism, Spanish food and refreshment. Tomorrow the competition begins.

Once back at the hotel, we obtained the necessary travel information and headed into town. Seville is a very beautiful city, as well as the cathedral in the city centre, there are several historical sites to visit. Some of us decided to take a river cruise to view the city from a different angle while others chose to walk to their chosen place. We all met up in the town centre and found a suitable eating establishment. A few hours later it was becoming evident how much effort we had put in earlier in the day, as the eyes were becoming heavier, and a few aches were beginning to appear.

Tuesday 15

The first of the competition days. The pool was only available for training for a short period in the morning 0800-0900, and priority was given to those competing in the days events. So, after a good training session, the rest of the day was given to free time, however all the divers stayed to give support to those competing, and also to mix in with the other federations to get any advice, contacts and generally find out how the other nations operate. Again, the quality of diving on show was of a very high standard.

Wednesday 16

The first of the RAF divers would be on show today, after some effort and negotiating we managed to get SAC Sally Raimondo entered into the ladies (29-34) 3m springboard event. Sally had not originally entered as she did have enough dives to put a full competition set together. However since her arrival in Seville, under the coaching of Russ, Sally now had a full set. There were some very good, experienced divers in her group. This however did not phase her; she put together a very technical set and performed very well indeed. Gaining a very respectable score, Sally finished just outside the medals in fourth place. Not a bad result for your first ever outing in full Masters competition.

With the competition finishing early, it was back on with the trunks and swimsuits, and a training session was put together for the last hour.

It was a quick turnaround at the hotel before heading off into town for some well earned dinner, and to celebrate Sally’s result.

Thursday 17

Back in the pool for another early morning training session, prior to competition starting. Today there would be two of the RAF divers on show, Sally in the 1m springboard, and team manager Chf Tech Kev Davidson in the men’s (35-39) 3m springboard.

First up was Sally, in the ladies (29-34) 1m springboard event. Fresh from her success in the 3m event, she had most of the divers from yesterday’s group to contend with. Her set was just as technical as yesterday if not more so, and although diving well, the scores were not forthcoming. A good performance had Sally coming in with sixth place, with the 3m gold medallistin seventh place. Well done Sally.

In the very next event, Kev made his European debut. The build up to the Masters had Kev trying out some newer, more technical dives, and he had put in a set of dives that was to push him. The competition was going well for Kev, however, having landed badly in round 4, he lost vital points. Getting his last two dives in, Kev managed to scramble some reasonable scores to finish in seventh place.

Friday 18

The last day of competition, and the last day the pool would be available for training. The last of the RAF competitors would be Kev and SAC Richard Ellender, who had to wait until the last day for his highboard event. The squad members made the most of their last full training session outdoors, before settling down to watch the day’s events.

First up was Kev in the Men’s (35-39) highboard. Once again Kev had put together a competitive set and opted to use different height boards. In Highboard competitors can opt for any of the platforms, 5m, 7m or 10m height. Starting off, Kev opted to use different heights to raise the tariff of his set. After diving well, he was in third place going into the last round. Unfortunately the last dive lost scores for a poor entry dropping Kev back into sixth place.

The last event of the competition saw SAC Richard Ellender in the men’s (25-29) highboard. This again was a big step up for Richard, like Sally this event was to be Richard’s first event in full Masters. Richard performed well, and all the hard work put in during training, and the advice given by Russ and other coaches had been taken onboard. Richard put together a good set and pulled off his big dives to score well. In a very competitive group, he came in a very respectable fifth place, and brought not only the RAF involvement, but the 2009 European Masters to a close.

In the evening, the GBDF had arranged an evening meal for all divers at a local Tapas bar, and an invitation had been made to all the other participating nations to bring the week to a close. As expected, the RAF group gave a very good impression of themselves; several coaches had approached Russ to commend us on both our attitudes to training and our performances during competition. Considering the relative inexperience of the squad, the RAF divers performed well above the expectations of the coaches and staff of the GBDF.

Saturday 19

Check out day. The squad had their last chance to get out and about in Seville, before returning to the UK to reflect on what they had achieved in such a short period of time.

A huge amount of progress was made by those participating on this tour. It not only proved a great success in the development of the RAF divers, but also enabled the squad to forge some very positive relationships between RAF Diving and the rest of the European diving community.

Thanks to the Royal Air Force Sports Board, Royal Air Force Swimming Association Executive Committee, and to BAE Systems for their continued support of Royal Air Force Diving.

The Squad

Chf Tech Kev Davidson Waddington Manager/Oic Tour

SAC Richard Ellender Waddington

SAC Sally Raimondo Coningsby

SAC Carrie Blyth Cottesmore

SAC Charlotte Bennett Benson