How deep is the Olympic diving pool?
In a world of constantly changing technology, the Olympic diving pool has remained surprisingly unchanged over the years. The water is kept at a constant temperature of 25 degrees Celsius (77 degrees Fahrenheit). It sits behind a Plexiglas barrier 1.2 meters (4 feet) above the pool deck, which measures 13 meters (43 feet) long by 5 meters wide by 1 meter deep (39 x 16 x 3 ft). There’s just enough room for divers to squeeze through an opening in the Plexiglas wall. Before getting on to how deep is the Olympic diving pool, let’s understand some background first.
The pool was created by Myrtha Pools, who specialize in constructing pools for international aquatic competitions. The company specializes in creating pools that are 10, 15 and 25 meters deep—but the Rio Olympic diving pool is quite different from all of these.
The Rio Olympic swimming pool is 27 meters deep, which translates to about 90 feet (27m). It has a volume of 800 tons of water and holds 10,000 gallons (38,000L) at maximum capacity—that’s enough to fill 1,000 standard garden ponds!
Divers are not able to see the bottom of the pool
Although you might be familiar with the dimensions of a swimming pool, or even a diving pool, you might not have known that Olympic pools are so much deeper than other pools. Many people who visit swimming pools will tell you that they can see the bottom of their pool. However, this is not true for Olympic diving and swimming pools.
The exact length and width of an Olympic pool vary depending on where it’s located—in London, it’s 50 meters long by 25 meters wide (164 feet x 82 feet). The depth varies too: At the 2012 London Games in 2012, divers jumped into water that was 2 meters (6 feet) deep at its shallowest point and 5 meters (16 feet) deep at its deepest point—which is unusual for an Olympic swimming pool!
Sunlight does not reach the bottom
- The pool is 10 meters deep.
- It’s not lit.
- It’s not heated.
- The water is not filtered, cleaned, treated, purified or sterilized. In fact, it’s basically just a giant puddle of gross bacteria-infested water that they let Olympic divers jump into from heights of over 8 feet in!
The deepest part of the diving pool
The Olympic diving pool is 10 meters (33 feet) deep, but the deepest part of it is actually around 15 meters. That’s deep enough for divers to feel like they are jumping out of a three story building (as one diver described it). The water is also so clear that you can’t see the bottom and due to this lack of visibility, sunlight does not reach all parts of the pool as well.
Water temperature in the pool
The water temperature in the pool is between 25 and 27 degrees Celsius. This is important because it helps to regulate heat loss, which affects performance. The water temperature also affects a diver’s body temperature, so if it gets too hot or cold, they might be at risk of injury or even death.
Due to its depth
The amount of chemicals needed to keep the pool clean is staggering. According to The Independent, it takes 800 tons of chemicals to fill up the pool with clean water. A total of 20,000 liters are added every day!
In addition, there are over 400 people on site during the Games keeping an eye on things like heating, filtering and cleaning. It takes six hours for all this water to pass through their hands before it’s ready for competition.
Conclusion: How deep is the Olympic diving pool?
We hope we’ve helped answer your question about how deep the Olympic diving pool is. Remember that it depends on where you’re looking from, so don’t be surprised if you see different numbers or figures!
