Nate Makarewicz seeks fourth Utah diving title

Nate Makarewicz is sitting on a unique opportunity.

The West (Salt Lake City) diver has already won three state championships. Now, with a firm grasp on the top ranking just two weeks out from the state meet, he has put himself in position to be the favorite to win the title as a senior.

"He has a chance to be a four-time state champion. That doesn't happen very frequently. There are maybe one or two others," said Gene McIntyre, one of Makarewicz's two coaches. "He is doing some of the most difficult dives you will see."

The ironic piece of the puzzle: he didn't even like diving when he first attempted the sport.

"It was a little bit tough getting used to landing on my head and doing flips into the water," he said. "It was a little bit scary. I ended up quitting for a year and a half."

His first diving stint took place when Makarewicz was 11. He took a little time off and then, just before entering eighth grade, tuned into the 2008 Summer Olympics. What he saw inspired him to give diving another try.

"There was one British team member named Tom Daley," Makarewicz said. "(He) was about my age and he was competing in the Olympics. I thought that was really cool, and I wanted to try it."

Since then, diving has become Makarewicz's life. While extensive practices and competitions may at times seem overwhelming, it is a schedule that keeps the teenager busy and keeps him moving up the competitive ladder.

In the summer, Makarewicz competes for USA Diving, which consists of 1-meter and 3-meter competition as well as a series of qualification meets at the local, regional and national levels. He has qualified for nationals in each of the last two years.

In Utah, high school diving is a winter sport spanning from October to February. The activity consists of only the 1-meter competition and is considered a non-scoring swim event. There are six meets scheduled throughout the season, and the state meet takes place the same weekend as the rest of the high school state swimming championships. This year the state meet is Feb. 7 at BYU.

Aside from diving, Makarewicz is a stellar student and competes in a second sport, cross country, which his dad has coached the last two seasons. He will graduate from West High with an International Baccalaureate diploma and is bound for Princeton University in the fall.

"He is very good academically. He is very high on diving talent," McIntyre said. "He is a very focused young man."

That focus has led to big plans.

"I plan on studying biology, either research or pre-med, for the next four years," he said, noting that he recently wrote a research paper on melanoma and might consider a career in cancer research.

Hopefully he will also have plenty of opportunity to practice his other favorite subject of visual arts as well as navigate a new challenge in the pool.

"I will have the opportunity to do platform diving," he said, referring the diving program at Princeton. "Their pool is equipped with a full set of platforms as well as 1-meters and 3-meters. I think it will be fun to try that and compete in it for the first time next year."

Before making the move, Makarewicz has a little unfinished business to take care of at home.

"Initially, it was my coaches more than me who thought that I might be able to win it freshman year," he said. "I worked really hard freshman year and I was really happy that I did my best and won. Since then, I've just been getting better and doing better each year."