By J. Shadé Quintanilla
Elena Yeh has always gravitated towards water. When she was a toddler, she could often be found jumping into pools before she even learned how to swim. By the time she was a one-year-old, she started taking swimming lessons and learned how to float. Fast forward a few years, Yeh’s affinity for water has turned her into a national diving champion. Winning the gold medal in her category at the AT&T National Diving Championship in August, her successful dive earned her an invitation to the UANA Junior Pan American Diving Championships in Matanzas, Cuba earlier this month.
The first international aquatics competition hosted by the country in 24 years, the Pan-American Championships was also the first international competition Yeh has ever attended. With over 100 competitors from ten different counties, Yeh represented the United States in the girls 11-and-under category. Her biggest win was when she placed fourth in the 3-meter contest, earning 220.05 points, while Mexican diver, Maria Sanchez, took first place with 244.45 points. Yeh also placed fifth for the platform dive.
The sixth grader’s parents and coaches are very proud of her accomplishments and participation in the international competition.
“She came a long way for her age, and we’re very happy about that,” said Michael Yeh, Elena’s father.
When asked about time her trip to Cuba, the young diver noted that she was happy she had the opportunity to attend.
“The diving experience was fun and challenging at the same time because I’ve never been to an international championship before,” she said. “I thought I did pretty good for my first one.”
Outside of her natural skill as an air-type, light diver, Elena and her family owe a lot of her sucess as an athlete to her many coaches at the USC Trojan Diving Team, the Arrow Dive Club and the Rose Bowl Aquatics Center.
In order to prepare for international competition, Yeh practiced just about every day with her coaches. Making the trek to USC from South Pasadena about four times a week, she worked with the university’s swim and diving coaches. She also practiced at her usual diving club–the Arrow Dive Club in El Monte–working with her coach of six years, Deliang Li.
The Yeh family spent about a week in Cuba. Her parents described the visit to the island almost as traveling back in time. With old taxis and car and colonial-style architecture, the family felt as if they stepped into a world 50 years back. While Elena spent most of her time competing, she was also able to do a little sightseeing and make friends from all around the world.
Yeh’s time in the 11-and-under category is almost up, but she still plans to continue with diving and competing. Her dream is to make it to the 2020 Summer Olympics games. Why does she want to keep diving?
“It’s thrilling,” she said.
