Facebook has a very broad appeal. “Facebook for divers,” has broad shoulder appeal.
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Sure, I’m digging the diving competition in the Olympics, and who cares if China is on its way to earn gold in all eight competitions? I just like watching people jump, flip, and twist while merely bubbles follow their toes into the pool. Ron O’Brien, on the other hand, really knows a few things about diving. He coached Greg Louganis to gold in the ‘84 and ‘88 Olympics, and he thinks he has figured out a way he can bring the U.S. team back into prominence. The Wall Street Journal profiled O’Brien, who has set up a website that matches up and coming high school divers with college coaches. One coach even called the site a “Facebook for divers.” From the Journal:
O’Brien’s aim is to keep American divers involved with the sport by helping them find scholarships they didn’t know existed. He hopes the added opportunities will deepen America’s pool of diving talent, increasing the odds that the U.S. eventually can compete again with China.
O’Brien says, in some cases, scholarships were going unused, because young divers didn’t know they existed. If you can muster up the clams to cannonball off the 10m platform, maybe you can get a free ride to college.
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