by Craig Morgan, theSunDevils.com writer
TEMPE, Ariz. -- Youssef Selim was a fearless 5-year-old when he first spotted the diving boards at his swimming club in Cairo, Egypt and thought, "that looks cool."
When he was 7, he dove from seven meters, catching the attention of a coach who grabbed him and said: "Where are your parents?'
"I was like 'why, did I do something wrong?'" Selim said. "He said, 'no, I want to help you' and he told my parents, 'I need your kid on my team right now. No school for him.'"
Selim stayed in school, but his natural talent and the training he received helped him skyrocket up the Egyptian diving ranks until he took part in the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro.
"There was a poster of the Olympics behind the diving boards and only a small entrance to the boards," he said, recalling his Rio experience. "I was behind it so I couldn't see the crowd. When I went on the board I felt like I was on a stage and all the spotlights were on me. The stands were full and everyone was waiting for a great dive because I am now officially an Olympian, but I'm not that consistent to do every dive good."
"I was so stressed. When you know someone is going to watch you it is so difficult."
Not for that fearless kid. At age 17, Selim took 25th place in the 3-meter springboard with a personal best score of 360.95, fueling his hopes for a bigger performance at the 2020 Games in Tokyo. Two years earlier, Selim discovered a path that could help him achieve that goal.
Sun Devils diving coach Mark Bradshaw saw Selim dive at a grand prix event in Canada in 2015 and was intrigued.
"I thought that young man has a lot of skill, a lot of potential, but he's really raw still so I put him in the mix for that recruiting cycle," Bradshaw said. "He's quick twitch so he jumps well and he spins well. That's what you need in our sport. He was raw just because of the lack of facilities and the lack of training in Egypt, but right now, for Egypt, they've probably got the best group of young divers they have ever had.
"I remember his athleticism was impressive and he was always smiling. He just looked like he was always enjoying it, like that was his general composure. I knew he'd be the kind of young person I'd enjoy coaching."
When Selim completed the Olympics, Bradshaw offered him a scholarship and he said Selim "about fell over himself" trying to get over here.
"I think I was talking to Tennessee at the same time but Mark Bradshaw's scholarship was so much better," he said. "I needed a great scholarship because the currency in Egypt now is 18 pounds (17.67) for one dollar. My older brother is studying computer science in Colorado and they are paying for him so there is no money for me.
"When Mark said I could have a scholarship, my parents and me were crying. We couldn't believe that was happening."
Selim arrived on campus last spring and was in shock at how different everything was, from the culture and the food to the academics and the athletic support he received as a Sun Devil.
In his first three days in Tempe, he did nothing but go from practice to his room as he adjusted to a life where he knew nobody or any of the customs. As time has worn on, Selim has emerged from his shell to display that naturally happy kid that Bradshaw first saw two years ago.
"He's such a great teammate; everybody loves him," Bradshaw said.
While Selim has grown more comfortable, his results have become more impressive.
He won the 1-meter, 3-meter, and platform events at the NAU Lumberjack Diving Invitational on Nov. 17-19 and Bradshaw is starting to see the fruits of their combined labor.
"He had some real consistency issues when he first got here," Bradshaw said. "He'd do something great followed by something wild, like, 'whoa, where did that come from?' We kind of had to reel that in a little bit and that's really the difference between training where he was and training here where you get around the right people, you get repetitions and you're in the right environment. Over time, through progressions and reps, he became more consistent.
"Now we're digging deeper, not into just consistency, but making some subtle changes that can be the difference between a score of 7 and a 9. Some of it is form; some is technique that to judges' eyes will earn a mark down. We're just cleaning it up a little bit."
Bradshaw believes Selim can score in any conference meet right now, and with time he thinks he can compete for a national title.
"The sky is the limit and he has his sights set pretty high with the Olympic games and making finals there in 2020," Bradshaw said.
To get there, Bradshaw has had to convince Selim to adopt another, not-so-subtle change.
"My first semester, I lived in Manzanita and I was almost eating pizza every day," the sophomore said, sheepishly. "When I went home in the summer, my mom cooks so well and I like her food so much so I was eating a lot and I got fat.
"When I got back here, Mark said 'what did you do to your body? How did you do that?'
"I said, 'my mom was cooking. It's so good. I can't control myself. So he said 'this semester, no more pizza for you. We have to get you back in shape.'
"I agree. I have to stop eating pizza."
TEMPE, Ariz. -- Youssef Selim was a fearless 5-year-old when he first spotted the diving boards at his swimming club in Cairo, Egypt and thought, "that looks cool."
When he was 7, he dove from seven meters, catching the attention of a coach who grabbed him and said: "Where are your parents?'
"I was like 'why, did I do something wrong?'" Selim said. "He said, 'no, I want to help you' and he told my parents, 'I need your kid on my team right now. No school for him.'"
Selim stayed in school, but his natural talent and the training he received helped him skyrocket up the Egyptian diving ranks until he took part in the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro.
"There was a poster of the Olympics behind the diving boards and only a small entrance to the boards," he said, recalling his Rio experience. "I was behind it so I couldn't see the crowd. When I went on the board I felt like I was on a stage and all the spotlights were on me. The stands were full and everyone was waiting for a great dive because I am now officially an Olympian, but I'm not that consistent to do every dive good."
"I was so stressed. When you know someone is going to watch you it is so difficult."
Not for that fearless kid. At age 17, Selim took 25th place in the 3-meter springboard with a personal best score of 360.95, fueling his hopes for a bigger performance at the 2020 Games in Tokyo. Two years earlier, Selim discovered a path that could help him achieve that goal.
Sun Devils diving coach Mark Bradshaw saw Selim dive at a grand prix event in Canada in 2015 and was intrigued.
"I thought that young man has a lot of skill, a lot of potential, but he's really raw still so I put him in the mix for that recruiting cycle," Bradshaw said. "He's quick twitch so he jumps well and he spins well. That's what you need in our sport. He was raw just because of the lack of facilities and the lack of training in Egypt, but right now, for Egypt, they've probably got the best group of young divers they have ever had.
"I remember his athleticism was impressive and he was always smiling. He just looked like he was always enjoying it, like that was his general composure. I knew he'd be the kind of young person I'd enjoy coaching."
When Selim completed the Olympics, Bradshaw offered him a scholarship and he said Selim "about fell over himself" trying to get over here.
"I think I was talking to Tennessee at the same time but Mark Bradshaw's scholarship was so much better," he said. "I needed a great scholarship because the currency in Egypt now is 18 pounds (17.67) for one dollar. My older brother is studying computer science in Colorado and they are paying for him so there is no money for me.
"When Mark said I could have a scholarship, my parents and me were crying. We couldn't believe that was happening."
Selim arrived on campus last spring and was in shock at how different everything was, from the culture and the food to the academics and the athletic support he received as a Sun Devil.
In his first three days in Tempe, he did nothing but go from practice to his room as he adjusted to a life where he knew nobody or any of the customs. As time has worn on, Selim has emerged from his shell to display that naturally happy kid that Bradshaw first saw two years ago.
"He's such a great teammate; everybody loves him," Bradshaw said.
While Selim has grown more comfortable, his results have become more impressive.
He won the 1-meter, 3-meter, and platform events at the NAU Lumberjack Diving Invitational on Nov. 17-19 and Bradshaw is starting to see the fruits of their combined labor.
"He had some real consistency issues when he first got here," Bradshaw said. "He'd do something great followed by something wild, like, 'whoa, where did that come from?' We kind of had to reel that in a little bit and that's really the difference between training where he was and training here where you get around the right people, you get repetitions and you're in the right environment. Over time, through progressions and reps, he became more consistent.
"Now we're digging deeper, not into just consistency, but making some subtle changes that can be the difference between a score of 7 and a 9. Some of it is form; some is technique that to judges' eyes will earn a mark down. We're just cleaning it up a little bit."
Bradshaw believes Selim can score in any conference meet right now, and with time he thinks he can compete for a national title.
"The sky is the limit and he has his sights set pretty high with the Olympic games and making finals there in 2020," Bradshaw said.
To get there, Bradshaw has had to convince Selim to adopt another, not-so-subtle change.
"My first semester, I lived in Manzanita and I was almost eating pizza every day," the sophomore said, sheepishly. "When I went home in the summer, my mom cooks so well and I like her food so much so I was eating a lot and I got fat.
"When I got back here, Mark said 'what did you do to your body? How did you do that?'
"I said, 'my mom was cooking. It's so good. I can't control myself. So he said 'this semester, no more pizza for you. We have to get you back in shape.'
"I agree. I have to stop eating pizza."