Personal Statement
So, you are probably looking at my 11 Dive meet score and wondering, why would I ever be interested in this kid joining my team? While my dive scores last year weren’t stellar, I invite you to look closer at the dives that were performed to get that 338.2, and will you notice that to get that score with such low difficulty dives means they were performed with excellence. Between a busted up knee the year before, a blown out ear drum for half the season, and a snow storm that had the pools closed for 2 weeks before the finals, it was a challenging season, but I was proud of the dive set I was able to put together despite all of that. This is really just the beginning, relying on my gymnastics background, I have already added a lot of more difficult dives to my dive set since last season including more inward one and a half and doubles, full and double twisters, and lot more consistency. I still have a lot more potential and room to grow into more difficult dives before my senior season.
So now that we have that out of the way, let me introduce myself. My name is Caleb Crane, and I am a high school diver. I have always been a bit of a dare devil, and when I was first introduced to competitive trampoline, I loved it. There is nothing like soaring, flipping, twisting, and feeling your stomach drop just a little bit as you prepare to land. I spent many years at a young age competing in USA Gymnastics Trampoline & Tumbling, including multiple state, regional, and national championships. I think my proudest moment though, was getting to go to nationals to compete as a level eight gymnast and getting to see the men’s Olympic trials at the same meet. As I entered high school, I had an interest in diving for two reasons, I knew that It tied in well with trampoline, and I love the water. That first year I was able to get the basics down and was able to dive with the Varsity team as a freshman.
Unfortunately, shortly after the season was over, I had a freak accident at the gym where I hit the ceiling during a warm-up on trampoline, landed hard and blew out my knee. A year and a half later I knew my time as a gymnast was over, my knee would never quite be the same, but I persisted on and embraced my newfound love of diving. I was able to start diving with a club team about four months before my junior season but then, I faced a second set back. Right before the school practice season started, I blew out my ear drum in another freak accident at a practice meet and had to be out of the water for 8 weeks while it healed. This meant I had ten days of winter break practices to put a dive set together and be ready for the district finals. With a little bit of guts, a lot of persistence, and a fully healed ear drum I was just able to squeak out enough dives with enough quality to qualify for State.
I know that with my gymnastic background, my current dive set, and my proven persistence through adversity, I can be an asset to your dive program. If you ask any of my coaches, they will tell you that I listen carefully to the feedback I am given and put it to practice. I thrive on precise instruction. I know that through your coaching I can continue to grow my dive skills as part of your dive program. As a Boy Scout and dive captain of my high school team, I know what it takes to be a good leader and a good listener. I know I can contribute to a team setting and support others on your swim and dive team. As a student, I excel at math and science, and have diverse interests ranging from percussion, to computer science, to art. In my academics I continue to perform well in all my classes, I know academically I will be an asset to your University.
A couple of other quick tidbits you might want to know or are probably thinking. Yes, I have done a little bit of three meter and platform diving and can throw most of my dives on three meter, there just isn’t access to those things close to where I live. No, I don’t know what I want to major in yet, but it will likely be math or science related, I am hungry to learn and find my passion. Yes, both my knee and ear are doing well, and haven’t limited me thus far, but I do need take care of myself and be mindful of those things. And yes, even though I am 6’3” I can rip a dive just a well if not better than the next guy!
