GI’s O’Rourke guns for gold at Empire State Games

by Eric Keppeler
Grand Island Dispatch, July 14, 2006

Ian O’Rourke of Grand Island will compete in the Empire State Games in diving later this summer.

For many athletes, the Empire State Games represent an opportunity to measure themselves against the highest level of competition. For some, the games will be the most competitive event of their lives.

Ian O’Rourke isn’t one of those people.

After a highly competitive national diving schedule that included the Eastern Nationals, the Grand Island High School senior is headed to Rochester on July 26 to 30 for the Empire State Games in a decidedly relaxed state of mind.

And he still has a good shot at winning the one-meter and three-meter scholastic diving events.

“This is a lot of fun,” O’Rourke said of this, his third trip to the state games. “It’s still a very prestigious event and I want to win it, but it’s a lot more relaxing than some of the others.”

His best effort at the state games was last year, when he finished second to take the silver medal. He might have done better had he not been sidelined two months prior to the games with an injury that kept him from practicing.

This year, he hits the games healthy and on a roll.

“Being healthy makes a big difference,” he said. “This year, I haven’t had any injuries, and I’ve been diving all along. I just need to be consistent.”

O’Rourke has to be considered the favorite in this year’s event after a standout high school diving season.

He repeated as New York State Public High School Athletic Association champion, and this year added a state Federation crown to his resume. He’s aiming to win a third straight state title this winter and earn All-America status for the fourth straight year - and the Empire State Games could give him an early look at who might stand in his way.

“This is very helpful because you get to see where the competition is,” O’Rourke said. “It’s a good confidence booster for me, and it also lets me see what the other regions have got.”

O’Rourke says that the key to winning the state title was degrees of difficulty that he added to his dives. He continues to find new and interesting ways to make his dives still more difficult - although he might not show all of them in Rochester, so that he doesn’t tip his hand when the state meet rolls around.

In the meantime, he figures that he can dive well enough to land the gold medal - although his goals don’t stop there.

“I want to break the Empire State Games record in both the one-meter and three-meter diving,” he said. “This is my last shot at scholastic diving, and that would be a great way to go into my senior year. I think I can do it - it just depends on how well I dive that day and on how consistent the judges are.”

He hasn’t committed to any college yet, but he’s drawing plenty of interest. His long-term goal is representing his country in the Olympics.