Jennifer r. Gardner
Staff Writer
As sophomore Dillon Jimison jumps off the diving board something feels off. Slight discomfort in his back that doesn’t go away. He knows that back injuries for divers are nothing to mess around with but he can’t stand the idea of sitting out during the championship season. He endures the discomfort in his back, earning scores of sevens and eights despite the growing pain. The atmosphere during competition is full of both anticipation and eagerness as his competitors and supporters watch from the sidelines.
“I get excited, I mean I know what [the divers] can do. Sometimes I’m a little nervous but most of the time I’m very excited for the fact that they’ll either hit it or they won’t. [Diving is] an individual sport and its tough,” Diving coach Barbara Rios said.
After the district meet, with first place secured, Jimison is taken straight to Sportsmed medical center.The diagnosis; a partial fracture that puts him on the bench for the rest of the season. Both Jimison, his family, and his coaches are stunned as their hopes for regionals go down the drain.
“His mom informed us that he was having issues.We knew it was a couple of weeks before districts and he wanted to try and make it through,” Rios said.
Dillon’s team and coaches were shocked at the severity of his injury, and as Rios shares, were very concerned for Jiminson but handled the situation well with good sportsmanship and support.
“It was the worst timing I could have had because it was the championship season so after districts I could have gone to region- als and after regionals state, but I couldn’t because my back fractured,” Jiminson said.
When Jiminson went to his coach and family about the fracture, there was no disguising their disappointment. Despite his success and skill, he would be forced to sit back and let his back heal before he could go back to diving. While the top six spots in regionals would be filled by Northside students, Rios shared that it was still frustrating not having Jimison able to compete against North East despite him having top state potential.
“What I had planned on doing was even if it was a fracture I would still have the option of being able to compete and maybe just tough out the pain but even my doctor told me that’s not an option. Like you need to sit out to keep things from getting worse,” Jiminson said.
While recovering Jiminson had to wear a back brace for at least three months, wearing it for over 23 hours a day, taking it off only for showers. Jiminson shared that it did fix his posture and that it wasn’t as bad as it seemed. Jiminson also described that his family and friends helped support him during this time and that his family especially played a big roll in his recovery. Their care and his passion for diving giving him the motivation to keep going.
“Diving is a terrifying sport [but] the thrill of getting a new skill, one that you didn’t think would otherwise be possible before, is a feeling I’ve never felt before. Its so motivating it’s keeps it worth it,” Jiminson said.
When his friends asked about what happened Jiminson tried to make light of the situation.
“I told ‘em it was just arching my back wrong and [a fracture] can happen to any diver and it happened to me. It was unfortunate timing considering it was right when the season mattered the most but what can you do,” Jiminson said.
Despite all of this, however, Jiminson continues to look on the bright side. He shared that even though this year didn’t go as well as he hoped because of his injury he still has high hopes for the next two years showing not only his endurance but also his drive to succeed. He shared that not once during his injury did he feel like considering leaving diving, and that through it all he felt like this whole ordeal was simply something he had to get through and that he can’t wait to get back.
“Any kind of fracture or sitting out and not being able to play is frustrating but you will return and you will return stronger so if you just keep your head up things will be okay,” Jiminson said.