Diving was popularized by the Swedes and the Germans in the 1700s and 1800s, becoming a competitive sport in Britain in the 1880s. The first diving organization, the Amateur Diving Association, was established in 1901. Diving was first contested at the 1904 Olympics in St. Louis and has been on the official Olympic programme since 1908. Women’s diving made its debut at the 1912 Olympic Games in Stockholm.

In diving, competitors compete to dive into the water from a 3m springboard and a 10m diving platform above the pool. Divers perform a variety of dives, making somersaults and twists in various sequences and orientations from different starting positions. Divers score points according to the requirements of the dive, and for making the least amount of splash when entering the water.

FINA is the international federation responsible for organizing and regulating the sports of aquatics for swimming, water polo, diving, synchronized swimming and open water swimming, currently including 203 national federations.