Sports Diver
In Sports Diver training, the emphasis is on building a sound foundation of open water diving skills and experience through a series of structured practical lessons.
Once you have gained this open water experience with a qualified instructor, you are ready to take part in dives with other Sports Divers or those of higher grades.
Course Outline
The Sports Diver Course consists of the following elements:
- Six classroom lessons
- A theory assessment
- A dry practical lesson
- One Sheltered Water lesson
- One optional Refresher/Orientation dive
- Five Open Water lessons.
All practical training in both Sheltered and Open Water includes the achievement of specific performance standards at appropriate points throughout the lessons.
Theory Lessons
Classroom Lessons are structured to provide prerequisite knowledge appropriate to their counterpart practical lessons.
ST1 Sport Diving
ST2 Diver Rescue
ST3 Equipment and Techniques
ST4 Deeper Diving
ST5 Breathing Gas Planning and Systems
ST6 Going Diving
Sheltered Water Lessons
The practical sheltered water lesson is to build on the practical skills learnt at Ocean diver in rescue skills.
SS1 Rescue Skills
Open Water Lessons
The emphasis on the Open Water dives is to build on the skills already taught during the Sheltered Water lessons and extend the practical knowledge of the student.
SO1 Diver Rescue
SO2 Use of SMB
SO3 Simulated Decompression Dive
SO4 Compass Navigation/DSMB deployment
SO5 Dive Leading/Basic Skills Review
To ensure that students receive experience in a range of conditions, the open water dives must include 5 conditions from the following, appropriate to the local conditions in which they will subsequently be diving:
- Shore dive - dive either commencing and/or ending at a gently shelving shore requiring a wading entry/exit
- Nitrox dive - using a breathing gas > 21% Oxygen up to a maximum of 36% (Nitrox)
- Dive using shot line - dive commencing with a deep water entry, using a shot line as the only visual reference for the descent and ascent, and ending with a deep water exit
- Low visibility dive - dive in visibility in the range between 2 and 4 metres
- Drift dive - dive in moving water in the speed range between 0.25 and 0.5kn
- Small boat dive - dive from a boat of less than 8m overall length, where water entry is via a backward roll, and egress from the water requires removal of equipment in the water
- Large boat dive - dive from a boat of greater than 8m overall length, (where the water entered) is via a stride entry, and egress from the water is accomplished via ladder without removal of any equipment except, possibly, fins
- Wall dive - dive along a vertical or near vertical wall with no solid bottom closer than 4m below the divers
- Dive in protective clothing - dive wearing either a wet suit or dry suit
Only one of the above conditions may be logged per dive. The Sports Diver syllabus includes 5 open water lessons which should total a minimum of 150 mins underwater time.
Dry Practical Lesson
Before undertaking this lesson, students should have a good basis of experience of diving activities. For this reason, this should be included as the final lesson in the sequence.
SP1 Assistant Dive Manager