Dive In

Earlier this year, Kieran Cuddy ’21 (Northfield, Minn.) earned All-America honorable mention awards by placing 13th and 14th in the one- and three-meter diving events, respectively, at the NCAA Division III Swimming & Diving Championships. We asked the women’s, gender, and sexuality studies major about life on and off the board.

NOTABLES

All-MIAC (2018 and 2019)
School record: One-meter six-dive

CHOOSE YOUR ADVENTURE

“I was a gymnast for nine years. I usually see two paths for a gymnast: pole-vaulting or diving. I love acrobatics and I’ve always loved being by the water, so I chose diving.”

FAVORITE DIVE

5235: Back one-and-a-half somersaults, two-and-a-half twists

COMPETING AT NATIONALS

“It was one of the best meets of my life. The back one-and-a-half somersault is always tricky for me, but when I went underwater, I knew I’d nailed it.”

BOARD STRATEGY

“Some athletes go through rituals before they dive. I get impatient—I don’t like to spend a lot of time up there. I think about small corrections, but I like to go fast and be in the flow.”

STUDY AWAY DESTINATION

Sweden

ENVIRONMENTAL ACTIVIST

“A lot of my life has this water theme right now. I’m helping build a movement to fight the Line 3 pipeline, which is under preconstruction in northern Minnesota. It literally feels like I’m trying to stop the end of the world.”

MAKING MUSIC

“I play the banjo in a folk-punk band. My band went on a monthlong West Coast tour last summer. It was magical.”