What Counts As A Failed Dive?

What Counts As A Failed Dive?

Any dive that scores a zero is technically a failed dive. 

And it usually has nothing to do with how the dive looked. You can rip a beautiful dive and still score nothing if it wasn't the dive you were supposed to do.

Let's get into the situations where this happens.

The main ways it happens

You did a different dive than the one you declared

Every diver submits a dive list before the meet. If your sheet says 105B and you perform 104B, that's a failed dive.

If you're a diver, get an free automated dive sheet here.

Sometimes it's a genuine mistake in the air. Sometimes the dive was written down wrong on the sheet in the first place, which is a rough way to find out you should double check your list and listen to the announcer when going up for your dive. You balked twice on the same dive.

One caveat here is if you perform the correct dive in the wrong position. This is not considered a failed dive, but it is a maximum of 2 points from each judge.

Balking twice

First balk is a two point deduction. Second balk on the same dive is a failed dive.

You didn't hold the position

If you announced a pike and never actually get into a recognizable pike, the referee can call it. This isn't technically a balk but it is a 2 point deduction for not performing the correct position. This one is more of a judgment call and it's less common, but it exists.

What it does to a meet

Diving scores are cumulative across the whole list, and a hard dive is worth a lot of points.

Take a zero on a 3.0 difficulty dive and you've lost a lot of points. There's generally no coming back from that in the same competition.

If a diver fails 2 dives in a meet, their meet is over. They are disqualified from the competition.

What I tell my Divers

Check your sheet.

It sounds too simple to be worth saying, but a lot of dives are failed because the diver didn't double check their dive sheet before the competition.

It could be the wrong code written down, incorrect position letter, a dive listed in the wrong order. Read it before you hand it in, and read it again before the session starts.

The other one is listening to the announcer or checking the board before you begin your dive.

I've personally nearly failed a dive because I was so focused on it that I forgot to listen to the announcer.

And if it does happen, it happens. Almost every diver who competes long enough takes a zero eventually. It's unfortunate, but your best is still ahead of you in the future!

Other things you're probably wondering

- DG

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