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Molly Carlson

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Molly Carlson
Personal information
NationalityCanadian
Born (1998-09-22) September 22, 1998 (age 26)[1]
Fort Frances, Ontario, Canada
Education
Height1.75 m (5 ft 9 in)[1]
Websitewww.mollycarlsonofficial.com
Sport
CountryCanada
SportHigh diving
University teamFlorida State Seminoles
Medal record
World Cup
Gold medal – first place 2024 Bahrain Women
World Championships
Silver medal – second place 2023 Fukuoka Women
Silver medal – second place 2024 Doha Women

Molly Carlson (born September 22, 1998)[1][2] is a Canadian high diver and social media personality. She is a member of Canada's senior national high diving team and placed second at the 2022, 2023, and 2024 Red Bull Cliff Diving World Series. Carlson uploads videos of herself diving on TikTok and YouTube.

Early life and education

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Carlson was born in Fort Frances, Ontario and lived there for the first year of her life.[3] She grew up in Thunder Bay.[4][5] She has an older sister, Megan.[6] Her mother, Kathleen Trivers, had both her children as a teenager. Trivers separated from Carlson's father, Jason, when Carlson was still in diapers.[7]

Carlson did gymnastics as a small child and began diving in 2008 at age nine.[8] She began training with the Thunder Bay Diving Club in 2008.[9][10] During her final year of high school, Carlson moved from Thunder Bay to Toronto to focus on diving and training to make the 2016 Olympic team.[5] During this time, Carlson had binge eating disorder and body dysmorphia.[11][12]

When she was 17, Carlson moved to Toronto for her senior year of high school. She began attending Florida State University in 2016[7] and graduated in 2020 with a Bachelor of Arts in psychology.[13] After graduation, Carlson relocated to Canada. She is currently enrolled in a Masters of Arts in counselling psychology at Yorkville University.[14]

Career

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Junior and university (2013–2020)

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At age 10, Carlson qualified for the 2009 Pan Am Junior Games.[6] In standard competitive diving, competing on the springboard and platform, Carlson was a seven-time national junior champion and a two-time Junior Pan-American champion (2013[2] and 2015).[9] Carlson competed at the Nanjing 2014 Youth Olympics in the three-meter competition.[15][16] Carlson won gold at the 2013 and 2014 International Youth Diving Meets.[2] In 2014 and 2016, she was a Junior World Championship Finalist.[5] She moved to Toronto for her grade twelve year so she could train at the Toronto Pan Am Sports Centre with the national team. Carlson tried to make Canada's 2016 Olympic diving team, but placed fourth at the Olympic trials.[7]

From 2017 to 2020, Carlson competed for the Florida State Seminoles. She was an NCAA All-American in 2017, 2019, and 2020 and the ACC MVP/Diver of the Year in 2017, 2019, and 2020.[13] In 2019, Carlson polled her Instagram followers to ask if she should compete in the Red Bull Cliff Diving World Series. They voted overwhelmingly yes.[17][15]

High diving (2020–present)

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After graduation, Carlson transitioned to cliff diving.[4] She began high diving after a series of wrist injuries made head-first entries difficult.[18] Carlson competed in the 2021 Red Bull Cliff Diving World Series. She entered as a wild card for Canada.[9] At her first cliff diving event in France, Carlson placed second.[4] She finished third overall in the series.[15]

In the 2022 Red Bull Cliff Diving World Series, Carlson won the Boston event. For her final dive, Carlson was awarded the season's first 10.[19] At 23, she was the youngest person to win an event at a Red Bull Cliff Diving World Series. Her boyfriend, British diver Aidan Heslop, broke the record later that day, winning the men's event at age 20.[20] Carlson also placed second at the Paris event[21] and the event at Lake Uri in Sisikon, Switzerland.[22] Carlson ultimately placed second overall in the series.[23][24]

Carlson trains at the Olympic Pool in Montreal,[20] the only training facility in the world with an indoor 20-metre platform.[5] She is coached by Stéphane Lapointe.[25] She won the 2022 AthletesCAN True Sport Award.[26] In 2023, she won the first Canadian Senior High Diving title, scoring 382.30, and the World Aquatics High Diving title, scoring 374.00 points over her four dives.[27][28] In July 2023, Carlson won the silver medal in high-diving at the World Aquatics Championships in Fukuoka, Japan. She scored 322.80 points, behind gold-medalist Rhiannan Iffland's 357.40.[29]

Carlson chronicles her diving career on social media.[5][25] On social media, she has founded the #BraveGang, through which she shares her own mental health journey and struggles in addition to providing a community for others to discuss their mental health.[30][12] As of January 2024 she has 3.8 million followers on TikTok and 1.41 million subscribers on YouTube.[31]

Carlson competed in the 2023 Red Bull Cliff Diving World Series. She placed second at the first four events of the series and won the Mostar event.[31] She placed second overall in the series with 990 points after a fourth-place finish at the final event in Auckland. Her top-four finish earned her a spot in the 2024 series.[32] Carlson won a silver medal in the women's 20-metre at the 2024 World Aquatics Championships.[33]

She placed first at the first stop on the 2024 Red Bull Cliff Diving World Series in Athens, with 323.85 points, just ahead of Rhiannan Iffland's 323.75 points.[34] Carlson placed third at the second stop in the 2024 series in Boston,[35] as well as the third stop in Polignano a Mare, Italy[36] and the fourth stop in Northern Ireland.[37] Carlson placed first at the fifth stop in Montreal, the first time the Red Bull Cliff Diving World Series had ever been in Canada.[38] In Montreal, her best dive scored 103.60 points in part due to a perfect ten, the first ten in the women's competition in 2024.[39] Carlson did not compete in the series' final event in Sydney, Australia due to a knee injury, but place second in the series overall for the third year in a row.[40]

Carlson placed first at the first World Aquatics High Diving World Cup event of 2024 in Bahrain. Before the final dive, Carlson was in third place behind Kaylea Arnett and Rhiannan Iffland. She then dove her second-hardest dive of the contest, with a 3.8 degree of difficulty, bringing her score to 328.20 and placing her in the lead.[41][42]

Personal life

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Carlson has struggled with anxiety and body dysmorphia. She has also battled a binge eating disorder. Carlson is an advocate for mental health, telling CNN, “I have the biggest passion for mental health [...] I really want to public speak to athletes on how to prioritize your self-care and ask for help when you need it, because I never want anyone to go through the year of hell that I went through and to feel isolated and alone.”[43]

Carlson, known for her daring feats in high diving, has often been an inspiration for athletes across disciplines. In an interview with Red Bull, Carlson discussed her approach to overcoming fear. She discussed overcoming anxiety and credited the USA Volleyball player, Victoria Garrick, as a major influence. Carlson explained that watching Garrick overcome her own struggles to become her true self motivated her to do the same for her followers, stating, “She’s my biggest inspiration, for sure. I feel like we’ve gone through similar situations, and I definitely would love to meet her one day.”[44]

References

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  1. ^ a b c "Molly Carlson". Red Bull. Retrieved October 17, 2022.
  2. ^ a b c "Carlson corners diving title". The Chronicle-Journal. April 28, 2014. Retrieved October 17, 2022.
  3. ^ Childerhose, Evan (June 2, 2023). "Molly Carlson's Rise in High Diving". FACES Magazine. Retrieved June 7, 2023.
  4. ^ a b c "Thunder Bay diver Molly Carlson reaching new heights with cliff diving". Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. July 23, 2021. Retrieved October 16, 2022.
  5. ^ a b c d e Gillespie, Kerry (October 13, 2022). "Canadian Molly Carlson is diving off cliffs and into the future of this 'risky' sport. And she's doing it all on TikTok". Toronto Star. Retrieved October 16, 2022.
  6. ^ a b "Carlson sisters making waves in the pool". The Chronicle-Journal. April 9, 2011. Retrieved October 17, 2022.
  7. ^ a b c Rutherford, Kristina (August 2024). "How Canadian Molly Carlson became the face of professional cliff diving". Sports Net. Retrieved September 24, 2024.
  8. ^ Pandey, Nikhil (October 13, 2022). "Watch: Professional High-Diver Jumps From An Italian Cliff Balcony". NDTV.com. Retrieved October 16, 2022.
  9. ^ a b c Reuben Villagracia, CJ (September 24, 2021). "Carlson takes diving to new heights". The Chronicle-Journal. Retrieved October 16, 2022.
  10. ^ Gary, Moskalyk (December 20, 2022). "Homecoming for Carlson". The Chronicle-Journal. Retrieved January 1, 2023.
  11. ^ Chidley-Hill, John (October 9, 2023). "Canadian diver Molly Carlson encourages youth to speak up ahead of World Mental Health Day". CBC. Retrieved January 22, 2024.
  12. ^ a b Lyttle, Zoey (September 15, 2023). "Molly Carlson Found Eating Disorder Relief in Cliff Diving: 'Didn't Matter What My Body Looked Like' (Exclusive)". People Magazine. Retrieved January 22, 2024.
  13. ^ a b "Molly Carlson". Florida State Seminoles. April 28, 2020. Retrieved October 16, 2022.
  14. ^ "Team Canada High Diver Set to Plunge Into MACP Studies". Yorkville University. August 24, 2020. Retrieved October 16, 2022.
  15. ^ a b c Browne, Ken (April 4, 2022). "Molly Carlson: Diver, Olympic dreamer, "influencer with anxiety"". Olympics. Retrieved October 16, 2022.
  16. ^ "Carlson off to Youth Olympics". The Chronicle-Journal. May 8, 2014. Retrieved October 16, 2022.
  17. ^ Peeters, Thomas (June 1, 2021). "Harness the Transformative Power of Your Inner Team Like Molly Carlson". redbull.com. Retrieved June 7, 2023.
  18. ^ Garrity, Tanner (October 6, 2022). "There's Good Shape. Then There's Red Bull Cliff Diving Shape". InsideHook. Retrieved October 16, 2022.
  19. ^ "Young Talent Stuns Champions In Red Bull Cliff Diving Season Opener". SwimSwam. June 6, 2022. Retrieved October 16, 2022.
  20. ^ a b Faris, Nick (August 2022). "These cliff divers travel the world to master 'what shouldn't be survivable'". theScore.com. Retrieved October 16, 2022.
  21. ^ "Record-Breaking Catalin Preda Powers To Cliff Diving Victory In Paris". SwimSwam. June 20, 2022. Retrieved October 16, 2022.
  22. ^ Diving Plongeon Canada (September 11, 2022). "Molly Carlson takes silver with a brand new dive at the Red Bull Cliff Diving World Series in Switzerland". SIRC. Retrieved October 16, 2022.
  23. ^ "No cliffs? No problem: Sydney Harbour hosts final leg of Cliff Diving World Series". ABC News. October 15, 2022. Retrieved October 16, 2022.
  24. ^ "Diver Iffland soars to success over Sydney". Port Lincoln Times. October 15, 2022. Retrieved October 16, 2022.
  25. ^ a b Moore, Alanna (March 23, 2021). "This Famous TikToker From MTL Does Some Of The Wildest Dives You've Ever Seen (VIDEOS)". MTL Blog. Retrieved October 16, 2022.
  26. ^ Chidley-Hill, John (December 21, 2022). "CP reporter Lori Ewing wins Randy Starkman Award for Leadership in Sports Journalism". Vancouver Is Awesome. Retrieved January 1, 2023.
  27. ^ D'addona, Dan (May 28, 2023). "Molly Carlson, Constantin Popovici Claim High Dive Titles at World Aquatics High Diving World Cup in Fort Lauderdale". Swimming World News. Retrieved June 7, 2023.
  28. ^ "Carlson Captures High Diving World Cup Title". Florida State Seminoles. May 30, 2023. Retrieved June 7, 2023.
  29. ^ "Leap to glory: Carlson, Macaulay capture Canada's 1st-ever high diving world medals". CBC. July 25, 2023. Retrieved January 22, 2024.
  30. ^ Dunick, Leith (December 19, 2022). "Carlson takes diving career to new heights". TBNewsWatch.com. Retrieved January 1, 2023.
  31. ^ a b Davidson, Neil (January 24, 2024). "Canadian cliff diver Molly Carlson set to make the leap in Auckland in season finale". Toronto Star. Retrieved January 30, 2024.
  32. ^ "Canadian Jessica Macaulay 3rd in final cliff diving event of illustrious career". CBC. January 28, 2024. Retrieved January 29, 2024.
  33. ^ "Canadians Carlson, Macaulay win high dive medals at World Aquatics Championships". CBC. February 14, 2024. Retrieved February 14, 2024.
  34. ^ "Results - Athens, Greece 2024". Red Bull. Retrieved May 28, 2024.
  35. ^ Red Bull North America (June 8, 2024). "RECORD BREAKING, 45,000 SPECTATORS CREATE CITY-STOPPING MOMENT AT HISTORIC RED BULL CLIFF DIVING WORLD SERIES IN BOSTON". www.prnewswire.com. Retrieved June 10, 2024.
  36. ^ "Italy Results". Red Bull. Retrieved July 23, 2024.
  37. ^ "Northern Ireland Results". Red Bull. Retrieved July 23, 2024.
  38. ^ Pagano, Pamela (August 25, 2024). "Molly Carlson wins Red Bull Cliff Diving competition in Montreal". CityNews Montreal. Retrieved August 27, 2024.
  39. ^ Thurber, Tommy (August 26, 2024). "A 'fairy tale' weekend for cliff diving in Montreal". Montreal Gazette. Retrieved August 27, 2024.
  40. ^ "Canadians finish second, third overall in Red Bull Cliff Diving season standings". rdnewsnow.com. The Canadian Press. Retrieved November 12, 2024.
  41. ^ "Popovici and Carlson win Bahrain World Cup". World Aquatics. September 22, 2024. Retrieved September 24, 2024.
  42. ^ Almaskati, Hussain (September 23, 2024). "Popovici and Carlson reach Golden Heights in High Diving". The Daily Tribune News Of Bahrain. Retrieved September 24, 2024.
  43. ^ Ruseckas, Martynas; Joseph, Sam (October 28, 2023). "Molly Carlson was in a 'dark place' prior to Rio Olympics. Now she is inspiring millions to talk about mental health". CNN. Retrieved February 6, 2024.
  44. ^ "Diver Molly Carson battled anxiety – now she leads a mental health movement". Red Bull. August 8, 2024. Retrieved September 19, 2024.
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