15-year-old former Rockford diver continues Olympic quest at event in Germany
Josh Hedberg’s best dive in Canada was his worst in Germany. But he’ll try it again in Montreal next month. And, hopefully, in Paris at the 2024 Olympics.
Hedberg was born in Rockford and grew up in Belvidere before moving to Indiana to train at world-class diving facilities at age 11, shortly after his older brother, Jacob, graduated from Belvidere North after winning four state diving medals.
Hedberg could become the greatest diver to ever come out of Rockford, a town that has produced 15 IHSA state diving champions in the 3-meter springboard and 1984 Olympic bronze medalist Ron Merriott.
More on Josh Hedberg:This Rockford native is the youngest USA men's diver to make World Championships
Hedberg finished fifth Sunday in the FINA World Cup in Berlin with 412.75 points on six dives. He earned 44.25 points on his fourth dive, a reverse 3 ½. His next-worse dive earned him 69 points. Even 62 points on his fourth dive would have earned him the bronze medal.
“I didn’t get the result I wanted on that dive, but I am pretty happy with all the other dives I performed,” Hedberg said in a phone interview. “I kicked out too early and left it short.
“It’s usually a pretty good dive for me. In Canada, I got six 10s and one 9 and a half on that dive. But unfortunately, I didn’t get ahold of that one tonight.”
That is normally one of his two best dives, along with an inward 3 ½ tuck.
Hedberg, 15, is the youngest U.S. male diver to ever qualify for the World Championships, where he finished 11th in Budapest in July with a score of 375.10. He finished fourth in the Olympic Trials at age 14, where he had the only perfect 10 on one of his dives. He won the FINA Grand Prix in June with 477.95 points in Calgary, Canada. He finished with 412.75 points Sunday.
Hedberg also won his sixth, seventh and eighth USA Junior National titles in Texas in early August, this time in the age 15 bracket. Next month he returns to Canada for the World Junior Championships in Montreal.
“The more competitions I go to, the more experience I get and the more I learn how to compete with the best in the world,” Hedberg said. “That’s what I am going to keep doing leading into Montreal. Keep working hard.”
Related:Belvidere's Jacob Hedberg latest in long line of great area divers
Hedberg is good at all three diving disciplines: the 3-meter springboard which Illinois high schools use, the 1-meter springboard and platform diving. But his specialty is platform diving. That’s why his family moved to Noblesville, Indiana. When they lived in Rockford, he would practice platform diving only once a month or so because such facilities are rare.
Hedberg said he isn’t concerned about winning, whether he is competing against divers his own age in junior competition or against adults in FINA meets. He just wants to keep improving in his quest to someday win an Olympic medal.
“My focus isn’t directly on winning,” he said. “It’s on giving each dive the best that I can do it. The place and the medals then come when you do your best.”
Hedberg was easily the youngest medalist contender at the meet in Berlin. The four divers who finished ahead of him are 28, 24, 25 and 30 years old.
Matt Trowbridge has covered sports for the Rockford Register Star for over 30 years, after previous stints in North Dakota, Delaware, Vermont and three years covering the Hawkeyes in Iowa City.
This article originally appeared on Rockford Register Star: Rockford native, Olympics hopeful shines in World Cup diving
