Team Z divers return to Sandwell for weekend training camp

Swim England’s Z team (Zone team) returned to Birmingham for a three day training camp as they continue their development.

21 athletes head to Sandwell Aquatics Center – which also hosted the team in March – as a number of divers prepare for the GoCardless Swim England Diving National Age Championships later this month.

Both Year 1 and Year 2 divers will train, learn and develop their skills from Friday 7 to Sunday 9 June, where they will be supported by a team of 15 coaches and team staff.

The camp’s focus for first-year divers will be on forward and inward diving, while second-year divers will work on spotting and jumping skills.

The second years will also have the opportunity to prepare for testing later this year as they look to progress to the Y Team and progress to the next phase of the Swim England Diving Talent Pathway.

They will be led by Swim England Diving Talent and Inclusion Officer Charles Calvert and Head Camps Coach Kirsteen Mitchell – who won Swim England Diving Coach of the Year 2022 (see the 2024 National Awards nominations here).

Coaches will also receive a presentation from Aquatics GB Head Diving Coach, Alexei Evangulov, who will introduce coaches to how he delivers spotting and jumping skills at an elite level.

Speaking ahead of the camp, Calvert said he was looking forward to seeing how far the athletes had progressed.

He said: “We have seen incredible development from our divers so far this year, with their positive and focused attitudes towards training and competition helping them achieve fantastic results so far this season.

“At the Aquatics GB Junior Elite Championships we saw some strong diving from this group and this camp will give those preparing for the national age group championships later this month a great opportunity to train at the venue and to prepare their competition on the lists.

“We will also have a number of athlete workshops and plenty of dry diving and pool time to support athlete development as we approach the end of the season.

“It’s shaping up to be an exciting weekend and I’m looking forward to seeing how much the athletes have progressed since the last camp in March”

You can find out more about the Swim England Diving Talent Pathway Here and you can see the full list of divers and camp staff below.