Diving's Commonwealth Games axing a major concern for sport at all levels, warns City of Sheffield coach

An Olympic diving coach from Sheffield fears his sport’s omission from the 2026 Commonwealth Games could have widespread repercussions from the top of the sport to the very bottom.

Despite being ever-present in the near century-long history of the Commonwealth Games, diving was one of a number of sports - alongside squash and hockey - axed from the next event in Glasgow due to cost-cutting measures this week.

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Tom Owens is the head coach at the City of Sheffield Diving Club who just this summer helped Yasmin Harper win a bronze medal at the Paris Olympics and team-mate Jordan Houlden finish fifth in the men’s 3m springboard.

Both of those athletes benefitted hugely from a Commonwealth Games in Birmingham two years ago to hone their medal-winning routines and better understand the demands of a multi-sport event that would be placed on them in Paris.

City of Sheffield team-mates Jordan Houlden and Yasmin Harper representing England at the 2022 Commonwealth Games (Picture: OLI SCARFF/AFP via Getty Images)City of Sheffield team-mates Jordan Houlden and Yasmin Harper representing England at the 2022 Commonwealth Games (Picture: OLI SCARFF/AFP via Getty Images)
City of Sheffield team-mates Jordan Houlden and Yasmin Harper representing England at the 2022 Commonwealth Games (Picture: OLI SCARFF/AFP via Getty Images)

Without that stepping stone to the next Olympics in Los Angeles in 2028, Owens believes Britain’s elite divers will be at a disadvantage and will struggle to build on the record haul of five medals won in Paris.

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“I do think it will have a knock-on effect for LA2028 but the scary thing right now is we’re not going to know how,” said Owens, who had been planning on sending two-time European junior medallist Maisie Bond to Glasgow on her journey to Los Angeles.

“From a performance perspective we’ve never gone into an Olympics without a Commonwealth Games as a benchmark event.

“The Commonwealth Games is a great development tool in our sport, for Yasmin and Jordan Birmingham was their first and a huge stepping stone for them. Jordan got medals, Yasmin didn’t but it drove her to want more and it put them both in a scenario where you’re stood in front of a crowd of 5,000 people all cheering for you, it’s difficult to come by those experiences in our sport.

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Britain's Jordan Houlden reacts after competing in the men's 3m springboard diving final during the Paris 2024 Olympic Games at the Aquatics Centre in Saint-Denis (Picture: MANAN VATSYAYANA/AFP via Getty Images)Britain's Jordan Houlden reacts after competing in the men's 3m springboard diving final during the Paris 2024 Olympic Games at the Aquatics Centre in Saint-Denis (Picture: MANAN VATSYAYANA/AFP via Getty Images)
Britain's Jordan Houlden reacts after competing in the men's 3m springboard diving final during the Paris 2024 Olympic Games at the Aquatics Centre in Saint-Denis (Picture: MANAN VATSYAYANA/AFP via Getty Images)

“Going to multi-sport Games where you live in a village for a long period of time, there is a skill to it, and if we want our athletes to be successful at Olympic level then the Commonwealths has been a benchmark event and a crucial part of their development.

“I do know that as a sport we have limited opportunities to compete on a scale of that size with sold-out arenas and the media attention, so I’m extremely disappointed.”

But for Owens, the repercussions will not just be felt at the very top of the tree, but also towards the bottom, namely the young people who might be inspired by the sporting feats they witness at a Commonwealth Games.

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“Tens of thousands of kids start sport having been inspired by big events,” he told The Yorkshire Post.

Yasmin Harper won a bronze medal at Paris 2024 and her Commonwealth Games experience was key to that. (Picture: MANAN VATSYAYANA/AFP via Getty Images)Yasmin Harper won a bronze medal at Paris 2024 and her Commonwealth Games experience was key to that. (Picture: MANAN VATSYAYANA/AFP via Getty Images)
Yasmin Harper won a bronze medal at Paris 2024 and her Commonwealth Games experience was key to that. (Picture: MANAN VATSYAYANA/AFP via Getty Images)

“At Sheffield we’ve had a massive influx of kids try diving off the back of the Olympic Games. We have a massive influx after every Commonwealth Games.

“The global sporting landscape is driven by major events, so it’s not fair to gauge it on the economics, that this is too expensive, because where does that argument end?

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“It’s bigger than that and we have a responsibility to give people opportunities to be active. You take away major events and what do we and they have to aim towards?

“I’m a parent, I’m looking for good quality places to take my kids to learn values, to be inspired by someone or something, which is everyone’s responsibility.

“It’s not just about trying to get medals around elite athletes’ necks, it’s about all of us.

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“If there isn’t a reason to have a diving club like Ponds Forge then eventually if you keep applying that thought process we’ve got nowhere to take our kids, nothing for them to aspire towards.”

Despite the news this week, Owens is hopeful that a resolution can be found between the respective nations, with England, Australia and Canada in particular having significant diving governing bodies.

“I’m hoping there’s a backlash and the diving teams around the Commonwealth are working hard to find a solution to this,” said Owens, who offered up the Royal Commonwealth Pool in Edinburgh - used for the diving events at the Glasgow Games in 2014 - as an alternative.

“Fingers crossed there’s a scaled-back Commonwealth Games diving event in 2026.”

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