Officials hail first-of-a-kind diving clinic at National Aquatics Centre

Trinidad and Tobago’s diving ambitions have taken a major leap forward with the launch of a ground-breaking two-week dive clinic at the National Aquatic Centre in Couva, aimed at introducing the sport to local coaches and athletes for the first time.

Hosted by the Aquatics Sports Association of Trinidad and Tobago (ASATT) in collaboration with the TT Olympic Committee (TTOC) and SporTT, the initiative marks the first structured diving programme of its kind at the National Aquatic Centre in Couva — a facility inaugurated in 2017 but until now, never utilised for diving.

The programme is directed by Virginia-based Diane Maiese alongside Bermudan Olympic diver Katura Horton-Perinchief and Mexican Olympian Julian Sanchez Gallegos.

Speaking on day four of the five-day introductory course, ASATT second vice president Stephen Mendoza hailed the turnout and enthusiasm of the participants as a “watershed moment” for aquatics development in the country.

Also supporting the clinic are American coaches, including a specialist spotting coach responsible for guiding athletes through flips and body placement during dry-land training.

“This is the first time something like this is happening in TT. We don’t have a diving programme, so this is truly historic,” said Mendoza. “We started out planning for just one weekend. But with the support of key stakeholders like TTOC’s Annette Knott, we were encouraged to think bigger.”

The camp, which runs over two weeks with a new group each week, is open and free to both aspiring coaches and young athletes. It features theoretical sessions for coaches in the morning, followed by practical application in the afternoon with children under their guidance.

So far, more than 30 local coaches and 95 athletes have registered across the two weeks — a turnout that exceeded the organisers’ expectations.

“This is grassroots straight back up,” Mendoza said. “We’re blown away by the participation and the hands-on nature of the sessions. The excitement among the kids has been phenomenal.”

The team also brought junior divers from abroad to serve as demonstrators and to inspire local participants. They will also use the central facility to train.

“Seeing people their own age performing dives helps the younger athletes visualise what’s possible. We even had swimmers and gymnasts jump in, and it’s clear that some of them have great potential — all we need is someone willing to jump from a height, and we’ll teach them to dive.”

World Aquatics, the global governing body for aquatic sports, has also thrown its support behind the initiative. Following a visit from World Aquatics president Captain Husain Al Musallam earlier this year for the Carifta Swim Champs in Trinidad, funding was approved to help launch the programme, Mendoza confirmed.

“This is the first step in a bigger vision,” Mendoza said. “World Aquatics has restructured the global approach to aquatic sports, and ASATT is evolving to meet those demands. We want TT to be represented in all five aquatic disciplines — swimming, water polo, masters, open water, and now diving.”

With ASATT celebrating 75 years of organised aquatics in TT this year, Mendoza sees diving as the next chapter in the association’s legacy.

“We’re giving ourselves three to five years for real development. And we’re open to foreign-based Trinidadians who dive abroad — we want them to know that the facilities are now here, and they can represent the red, white and black.”

“That being said, we are open to foreign-based Trinidadians who have been diving. We already have one person here with TT parentage and grandparentage. We are hoping, in time, she gets good enough to represent us on the international stage, or if she creates a culture for other foreign-based divers with TT roots, who would be willing to come and represent us.”

The final day of the first leg of the inaugural clinic splashes off on August 1, with a graduation culminating the week’s events. The second leg swims off on August 4.