This was originally written in Sept of 2000. It's interesting to note that the questions are still valid after 2 years. There are some additions that include more recent happenings in US Diving. Even though the questions are in no particular order, the answers may show us why the sport is losing its appeal to kids across the country and how we got to be a low interest sport with no medal contender. We've come a long way since our world dominance but the question that remains is: "How much further away are you willing to see it go?"

1. Why do membership fees keep increasing at enormous rates?
2. Why does it cost more for USD membership than in any other national organization?
3. Why wasn't there a decrease in fees when the cost of Insurance was lowered?
4. Why does the membership pool getting smaller?
5. What is being done to increase membership numbers?
6. Why doesn't every member of US Diving get a vote?
7. If you are not aspiring to be a National or International coach, why do you need to be certified?
8. If we were an inherently and extremely safe activity, why does everyone need to be certified?
9. Why hasn't US Diving publicly stated something about the Safety of the Sport with all the safety information it has been given?
10. How does USD help coaches get pool time or upgrade facilities?
11. What has USD done to curb the disappearing diving board situation?
12. Who is interpreting the meaning of safety?
13. Why do we need to accept USOC money if they are going to dictate policy?
14. Why are members who never have contact with any aspect of the USOC subjected to their directives?
15. Why don't the Seniors Divers have to do any requirements tuck?
16. Why aren't coach's certification cards mailed out anymore?
17. Why does it take forever for the USD card to get to the divers?
18. Why don't the grass roots people have input into what the Seniors have to do? That's what the senior coaches are doing to the grass roots!
19. Why did US Diving imply that they had 25,000 members prior to the last Olympics?
20. Why are the most difficult skills required of the kids with the least amount of skill and exposure to the sport?
21. Why can't age group divers select dives from the entire table of dives?
22. Why am I not allowed to determine what's best for my program?
23. When Ron O'Brien retires, who will be his successor?
24. When Dick Kimball retires, who will be his successor?
25. Who will replace the 4 or 5 members that currently run US Diving, when they retire?
26. Why do the same names keep appearing in leadership positions when many were voted out of their elected positions? The question is really related to the process of appointments by the leadership. It's the same people with the same ideas using the same methodology.
27. How did we get to be a low interest sport with no medal contender?
28. Why are there people who chair committees that don't have any diving background, either as a coach or a diver?
29. Why are committee member's names on documents when they have never actually worked on or even saw the finished, approved documents?
30. How can committee chairs with no diving experience be left to decide which are sound ideas and which are not?
31. Isn't there more to US Diving than just focusing on a Gold Medal?
32. What does US Diving offer the divers that are not medal contenders?
33. What is the purpose of US Diving? Are they following the agenda written in their own rulebook? Are they following their own Mission Statement?
34. What agenda is US Diving following? That agenda appears to be set up for the few.
35. Who makes up that agenda?
36. Why isn't the BOD sympathetic to the problems grass roots people face?
37. Why aren't the requirements for age group coaches different than that of the senior/elite coaches? Are their needs the same?
38. Who decided that coaches need education? Is that the reason for the USD University courses?
39. Why so many mandated certifications especially when they aren't being recognized by pool owner/operators and others?
40. Who decided that we need the Long Range Plan (in particular the one that was presented)?
41. Why didn't the LRP appear on the USD web page so comments could be made by the entire membership?
42. Why was the LRP shrouded in secrecy?
43. Where have all the sponsorships gone?
44. Why did we lose them?
45. Why does almost everything that happens in US Diving have to be secretive?
46. Was the LRP the item once voted on as the "concept of an idea"?
47. Why didn't the full LRPC have any input beyond the basic wording?
48. Why were there only 4 or 5 people that could make changes to the LRP?
49. What if the membership doesn't like 8 years of the LRP?
50. Why does the LRP resemble the "Chinese Way"?
51. Have there been any changes in the LRP?
52. Is the LRP dead?
53. What is the purpose of the grass roots/Junior programs?
54. Where do these programs fit into US Diving?
55. Why do we need new positions in the organization?
56. Will those be paid positions?
57. Why does the pool of coaches need to be leveled?
58. Who decided that the pool of coaches needed to be leveled?
59. Why is money being solicited solely for training sites?
60. Who made these decisions?
61. Why do we need Regional and National training sites?
62. Have the training sites made a difference in our quest for world dominance?
63. Where does the money come from to operate these sites?
64. Are the training sites self-sufficient? (Do they lose money?)
65. Why are Regional Training centers allowed to compete against other clubs?
66. Why would Regional Training centers be allowed to recruit divers away from their home clubs? Is this the USD's rationale for talent identification?
67. Are the training centers considered the grass roots of US Diving?
68. Does USD spend more money than other FINA groups?
69. Why are there 3 different funds under US Diving (The Foundation, general and the Ray Rude fund?)
70. Why isn't there a complete accounting of those funds?
71. Is there a difference between a club subsidized by US Diving and one that is not? (Refers to the training sites etc)
72. How many full time coaches and programs operate year round in US Diving?
73. If we are copying the "Chinese Way", how can their 11 year old win the Goodwill Games on tower and ours are stuck doing skills training?
74. Why is our program being handicapped in this manner? (We can't even seem to copy right!)
75. Why doesn't the General Council appear to have the best interests of the sport in mind?
76. Why was the GC remiss in his duty to explain what his own committee was voting on?
77. Who's interests was he protecting when he called members of his committee "Stupid"?
78. Why isn't US Diving more user friendly?
79. How can an appointee legislate changes in voting procedures (extending the president's term) without membership votes?
80. Why were word changes allowed during that process? (Any word change changed the entire meaning of that, which was intended.)
81. Why were some items in the rulebook deleted by the editor without the knowledge of the members?
82. Why did one member have to legally challenge a deceptive vote at the last convention?
83. Why are the athletes only given partial information prior to voting?
84. Why don't the coaches' votes carry a more weight in USD?
85. Why does the President have 11 votes?
86. Why is there a feeling of general mistrust with the leadership of US Diving?
87. Why are certain promises to the divers being broken?
88. Are the training sites going to be the only USD recognized diving in the USA?
89. Why is more money seemingly being spent on the administration rather than the athletes? (This includes travel expenses for the leadership and others.)
90. Why are the training sites losing money when they were supposed to be self-sufficient?
91. What happened to our impeccable safety record?
92. Since the leadership in essence "guaranteed" the safety of its coaching by mandating certifications, shouldn't they be held accountable for our blemished safety record?
93. Why doesn't the leadership cut funding for items that aren't working?
94. Is grant money given out fairly? Do we get what we paid for?
95. What guarantees are in place to insure that the money is used for it's designated purpose?
96. Who okay's this money?
97. Who checks to insure that it is used for its designated purpose?
98. Why won't the leadership admit it may have made a mistake with some of their decisions?
99. Who is accountable for our low interest sport and no medal contender performances?
100. Why does the leadership continue to fund unsuccessful ideas such as training sites?
101. Why is the President allowed to use the USD web site as a political tool?
102. Is the leadership interested in improving the status of the sport or preserving its own interests/position?
103. Why is everything so complicated in USD?
104. How did USD become so dysfunctional?

If you are satisfied with the way things are going in US Diving, then the answers to the above questions will not be of interest to you. For those who are concerned about what's happening in the organization, you may want some of these questions answered to your satisfaction. If the status quo remains, you will not see any meaningful change…just more of the same. Change is a good thing but in this case it would be wonderful and long over-do.

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