Iowa College Diving Season: Hawkeyes, Competitions, and Athlete Wellness

Iowa College Diving Season: Hawkeyes, Competitions, and Athlete Wellness

Therapy| Sports| HandsonSports| Pain&Injury| Flexibility & balance| physical endurance| precision| diving
August 11, 2025•5 min read

The University of Iowa’s diving teams call the Campus Recreation & Wellness Center (CRWC) home. Opened in 2010, this $69 million natatorium features a state-of-the-art 50-meter competition pool and a separate deep diving well. The facility even includes a dedicated athletic training room specifically outfitted for Hawkeye swimmers and divers to receive on-site evaluation, treatment, and rehabilitation. As a result, Iowa’s program has world-class training resources. In its first year as a venue, CRWC hosted the 2011 USA Diving Winter Nationals, and it has since welcomed the 2015 NCAA Men’s Championships and multiple Big Ten Swimming & Diving Championships (2012, 2015, 2019, 2020). In March 2025, Iowa hosted the NCAA Zone Diving Championships at the CRWC, underscoring Iowa City’s role as a hub for big diving events.

College diving in Iowa isn’t limited to the Hawkeyes. The annual Cy-Hawk meet (Iowa vs. Iowa State) features spirited diving competition – for example, Iowa swept the women’s diving titles in the 2024 dual meet, with senior Makayla Hughbanks winning the 3-meter event. Iowa State University also fields a collegiate diving program as part of its Cyclones swim team (competing in the Big 12). In addition to dual meets, Iowa’s facilities regularly stage invitational meets and postseason qualifiers. Together, these events give Hawkeye divers exposure to high-level competition at home.

Diving is an exacting sport that demands extraordinary dedication and discipline. College divers endure grueling training – often waking early for long pool sessions and dry-land practice each day. They must perfect complex flips, twists, and entries over and over, which is both physically and mentally taxing. This rigorous regimen can lead to fatigue and physical strain: repetitive jumps and overhead movements often cause shoulder soreness, back strain, or neck stiffness. Mental toughness is equally essential – divers manage performance anxiety and pressure in competition, using techniques like visualization and goal-setting to stay focused. In short, every dive is a test of the athlete’s precision, resilience, and hard-earned skill.

With such demands, common diving injuries are well-known. Acute mishaps – like a poorly landed dive – can sprain ankles or even dislocate shoulders (often on dry land during drills). In the water, the impact of entry can jar the spine or shoulders, leading to pain and overuse injuries. Over time, divers often experience chronic strains: rotator cuff or labral shoulder injuries, knee and wrist overuse injuries, and low-back pain. When injuries occur, specialized physical therapy is crucial. Sports therapists work on pain management (ice, heat, manual therapy) and prescribe restorative exercises to rebuild strength and flexibility. In rehabilitation, therapists also retrain functional diving motions so athletes can safely return to training. This evidence-based approach means injured divers recover healthier and quicker, preventing setbacks from becoming long-term problems.

Preventing injury is a key part of a diver’s regimen. Coaches and therapists emphasize strong shoulders, core, and legs, along with enhanced flexibility. Dry-land workouts complement pool sessions: for example, divers might jump rope to build calf and core endurance, perform lateral lunges to strengthen hip stabilizers, and do squat jumps for explosive leg power. Bodyweight exercises like push-ups, pull-ups, flutter kicks, and planks are also common to build upper-body strength and core stability. These exercises – done 2–4 times a week – improve balance, muscle coordination, and joint support. By coupling such strength/flexibility routines with careful technique training, divers can mitigate overuse strain and manage aches before they become injuries.

Nutrition is another pillar of a diver’s preparation. Because diving requires both power and precision, athletes must fuel their bodies adequately while staying lean. Diver diets typically focus on nutrient-dense whole foods. Lean proteins (chicken, fish, eggs, legumes) are eaten to repair and build muscle, while complex carbohydrates (whole grains, fruits, vegetables) sustain the energy needed for intense training. Healthy fats (nuts, dairy, oils) support overall health and recovery. Proper hydration is also stressed – even mild dehydration can impair coordination. In practice, divers match their calorie and nutrient intake to the workload: they avoid drastic calorie cuts that would sap performance, ensuring energy levels support both training and adequate bone/muscle health. With the right fueling, divers optimize their strength-to-weight ratio and stay mentally sharp through practice.

Practitioners at Iowa’s Hands On Sports Therapy (handsonsports.com). are well-positioned to support college divers. Hands On Sports Therapy (based in West Des Moines) describes itself as providing personalized sports and orthopedic therapy by experienced clinicians. They treat athletes with hands-on techniques – soft-tissue mobilization – to alleviate pain, restore motion, and correct biomechanical imbalances. Sessions are by appointment and one-on-one, ensuring focused care. The practice’s blog highlights examples from various sports (e.g. swimmers, figure skaters, volleyball players) showing their expertise in flexibility, strength, and recovery. For instance, a blog post on swimmers emphasizes rigorous recovery sessions and notes that Hands On offers flexible scheduling for pain relief, mobility improvement, and injury prevention. While not specific to diving, these services would likewise benefit Hawkeye divers – especially around major Iowa meets when athletes seek pre- and post-competition therapy.

Many individual Hawkeye divers have also shone in the spotlight. Senior Makayla Hughbanks of Bettendorf, IA, has repeatedly led the Hawkeyes in Big Ten competition. In October 2024, she swept both the 1-meter and 3-meter diving events against Northern Iowa, scoring 289.73 and 305.25 points respectively, and was named Big Ten Diver of the Week – the third time she has earned that conference honor. Hughbanks already owns multiple high-score marks in school history and regularly combines athletic success with strong academics. (Junior divers like Olivia Swalley have similarly claimed conference awards in recent seasons.) These athletes exemplify the talent coming through Iowa’s program and the balance of discipline, skill, and support that powers college diving in the Hawkeye State.

#IowaHawkeyes #CollegeDiving #SwimmingAndDiving #AthleteWellness #SportsTherapy #Nutrition #DivingSeason #HawkeyePride



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