Tight bond between Saskatoon divers and coach helps all 3 live out their Olympic dreams

Margo Erlam is on the cusp of achieving a childhood dream of competing in the Olympics, so it's hard to imagine that just six years agoshe was ready to give up the sport of diving altogether.

"I was really struggling with confidence and a lot of mental health issues," Erlam said, noting that the coach she'd been training with in Calgary had been very strictand it had eaten away at the joy she took from the sport. "I was dead set on being done."

Before she called it quits, she reached out to long-time diving instructor Mary Carroll at the Saskatoon Diving club and asked Carroll to coach heron a trial basis.

It ended up changing the course of Erlam's future. She moved to Saskatoon on her own at the age of 16 to train with Carroll.

"I came and I fell in love with her coaching style and the team was so amazing. It was so much less competitive than Calgary was and everybody was so loving," Erlam said.

Now, Erlam and her teammate Rylan Wiens will both be heading to the Summer Olympics in Paris with Carroll as their diving coach The three sharenot only the love of their sport, but a tight-knit bond.

Unlike Erlam, Wiens has been training with Carroll since he was about eight, giving him a chance to see how far he could go under one coach.

"We're always on the same page, coming to the pool with our best foot forward and trying to make every day better than the last one," Wiens said, noting the pair have the ability to banter back and forth and discuss training, intuitively understanding the mechanics of improving his work.

"Two people is better than one person for looking at the technique. It's really cool and amazing that we can [work]like that together."

That coach-swimmer relationship has extended to include Erlam.

"I remember at Olympic trials as I was watching her,[I was]probably almost as nervous, if not more nervous than when I competed at my own Olympic trials three years ago," Wiens said.

He said both himand Erlamqualifyingshows the strength they've built in their local diving program.

For her part, Carroll said she's seen Wiens grow up from a "hyperactive" little kid to a focused and disciplined diver.

"His parents have to be proud. I'm proud. We kind of all helped him in that," she said.

As for Erlam, she's worked hard to get to the point she's atand Carroll hopes she can focus on maintaining her composure in the biggest sports competition in the world.

"It's more of a mental state. I mean, the technique, the hard work, all of that is behind both of my athletes," Carroll said, noting the small, tight-knit diving club doesn't just focus on building great athletes, but people of great character.

WATCH |Saskatoon diver excited for first Olympics:

Saskatoon diver excited for first Olympics

3 months ago

Duration 4:17

Margo Erlam will compete in the three-metre springboard at the Summer Olympics in Paris. It's her first trip to the Olympics.

Carroll will be at the Olympics not just with her "diving kids," as she calls them, but also her own daughter Sydney Carroll, who's on Canada's artistic swimming team.

• Two Sask. women on roster for Canada's artistic swimming team at Paris Olympics

She hopes her divers can achieve their personal bests and all the goals they've worked towardas a team.

"So that's what I'm looking forward to, that final day and saying 'Wow, we had a great 2024.'"

LISTEN |Saskatchewan is sending 10 athletes to Paris to represent Canada at the Olympic Games:

Saskatoon Morning8:40Saskatchewan is sending 10 athletes to Paris to represent Canada at the Olympic Games

The CBC's Theresa Kliem gives us a look at some of the Saskatchewan athletes competing at the Olympic Games in Paris, including medal hopefuls swimmer Blake Tierney and diver Rylan Wiens.