NODC COVID Perseverance

On March 13, 2020, several of our divers were competing in a National Qualifier in Toronto at TPASC. On March 14th, in the middle of the competition, all divers were sent home unexpectedly as the whole world changed. Covid-19 has impacted everyone and our divers were no exception. The way we practiced changed, the way we socialized changed, the way we stayed connected as a team changed.

We started with some Zoom training. It was a learning curve, but we got the hang of it, and Diving Plongeon Canada provided us with some amazing supplemental training to incorporate into our new “routine.” As we headed into summer, we obtained access to an outdoor pool for holding practice, and the divers were over the moon to be back in the water (and in the sky) to restore some sense of normalcy. As the months dragged on and the weather got colder, we worked to find ways to navigate the isolation of the pandemic, including homemade masks, ongoing online training, and even a Halloween-themed outdoor scavenger hunt (virtual, of course!).

Though the Nepean Sportsplex remained closed due to renovations, we had the opportunity to move our practices to Walter Baker as the weather cooled for some limited training while we all eagerly awaited to return to our home pool. December brought a reopening of the Sportsplex, followed in quick succession with a second shut down of the region. But we were back to training in February and have grown accustomed to our dryland training in masks, knowing that everyone’s safety is the first priority.

Though this has been a very unusual training season, we at NODC are a family, and families take care of each other.