Boys Diving MVP: Malcolm Thompson, Mt. Lebanon

Malcolm Thompson put the spring in diving this winter. The Mt. Lebanon sophomore bounded his way to a fifth-place finish in the WPIAL Class 3A championship held Feb. 25 at North Allegheny High School pool. He scored 402.05 points and narrowly missed gaining a berth in the PIAA Championships.
“Malcolm has so much potential,” said Mt. Lebanon swim coach Tom Donati. “Many coaches say they have never seen a diver get so much height on the board.”
Thompson’s bounce comes from the trampoline. His family has three of them at their farm in Wexford.
“Trampoline is the secret,” he said.
Practice helps, too. At age 10, Thompson became interested in diving while watching one of the lifeguards at the outdoor swim center, where he trained with the Mt. Lebanon Aqua Club.
“I literally tried to emulate him,” he said.
When people started telling him that he could dive, he joined both Pitt Competitive Diving Club as well as the Mt. Lebanon High School team.Thompson was also playing wide receiver and cornerback for the Blue Devils but dropped football for diving.
“I love diving,” he said. “I would do diving over any other sport,” he enthused. “Diving is different. Very graceful and elegant but you also have to have power and know how to get in and out of a dive.
Besides,” he added, “it’s fun.”
While he runs cross country and track because they are “good cross-training” activities, Thompson enjoys playing the double bass in the high school orchestra as well as a hip-hop orchestra in Oakland.
“I’m fully focused on diving, my practices and music,” Thompson said.
Thompson is looking for a big bounce from diving. Having narrowly missed participating at states, he said, “I am hungry for next year.”
Thompson is adding difficulty to his diving list with the expectation of finishing in the top-3 in the WPIAL, going to the PIAA Championships and earning a spot on the podium. Before he graduates, he plans to be a state champion with a scholarship offer in hand.
Because he travels a lot in the summer on vacation with his parents, Pete and Marie, or driving to diving camps, Thompson has already visited many college campuses. He is interested in Ohio State, Michigan, LSU, Pitt and Purdue. Thompson hopes to follow in the footsteps of his cousin, Max Wholey, and become a pilot or work in the aviation industry.