June 13, 2023 (Montreal) – For the first time in its history, Canada will have five representatives in the high diving events at the 2023 World Championships in Fukuoka, Japan, from July 25 to 27. A male athlete will be part of the Canadian delegation, also a first. 

Molly Carlson (CAMO), champion of the 2023 High Diving World Cup held in Fort Lauderdale last May, will be one of the favorites on the women’s side. The 24-year-old diver has been making her mark ever since she entered the Red Bull Cliff Diving World Series in 2021. 

On June 4, in Boston, she finished second to Australian Rhiannan Iffland in the first stage of the Red Bull Cliff Diving World Series. The Australian will be looking to defend her World Champion title. 

Jessica Macaulay (CAMO), bronze medallist in Fort Lauderdale, will also be flying the Canadian flag in Fukuoka. A permanent athlete on the Red Bull circuit, she finished third on the podium at the last World Championships in 2019. 

Aimee Harrison (Boardworks) will also be taking part in her second Worlds as a high diver. In 2019, she placed 11th in the 20 m event. She achieved the same result at the Fort Lauderdale World Cup last May. 

The women’s team will also include Simone Leathead (CAMO), who made her high diving debut last fall. She won the Montreal International Junior Championships on the 15 m platform in December, then jumped to 20 m to reach the senior level. 

Making history on the men’s side

For the first time, Canada will have a male athlete in its delegation. Michael Foisy (Mustang Diving) qualified in extremis thanks to his performance at the Fort Lauderdale World Cup. 

The 27-year-old is making his international debut in high diving. Originally a skateboarder, he began diving from cliffs for pleasure at the age of 23, outside the competitive arena. 

He will be looking to improve on his 25th-place finish at the World Cup in Florida last May. 

“It’s really good to finally have a representative on the men’s side. What’s also encouraging is that we have four or five other Canadian athletes coming up behind. We hope to be able to field a full team on both the men’s and women’s side next year,” says Olivier Morneau-Ricard, Manager, Sport Development at DPC. 

Canada is one of the forerunners of this increasingly popular extreme sport.

“We have a very competitive women’s team. Canada is definitely one to watch. We’re way ahead of most countries. This will be a considerable advantage if the sport is added to the program of the 2028 or future Olympic Games,” asserted Morneau-Ricard, who in addition to developing the sport in the country is a high diving international judge. 

The Canadian team will be led by Stéphane Lapointe, an internationally renowned coach with a solid reputation in the field. In fact, several other athletes in action in Fukuoka are training in Montreal under coach Lapointe, including Great Britain’s Aidan Heslop and Ukrainian Oleksiy Prigorov. 

About Diving Plongeon CanadaDiving Plongeon Canada (DPC) was established in 1967 as a not-for-profit organization to promote the growth and awareness of the sport in this country. As a member of FINA, the world’s governing body of aquatic sports, DPC contributes to the development of globally accepted standards of excellence in diving and supports the rules and regulations of international competition. DPC shares a national commitment to advance the art and sport of diving and to position Canada as the number one diving nation of the world. For information, visit www.diving.ca.

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Information:
Alexandra Piché
Communication manager
(514) 625-5513
alexandra@diving.ca