It might have been luck that landed North Carolina diver David MacDonald in the semifinals of the men’s three-meter at the AT&T U.S. Diving National Championships, but it was perseverance that earned him a place in UNC history.
MacDonald finished two spots outside of the top 18 in the quarterfinals of the Championship meet, which ordinarily would not have allowed him to advance to the next round. But two divers could not attend the semifinals, and the redshirt senior squeezed his way into the last spot.
With a 12th place finish in the semifinals, MacDonald became the first Tar Heel diver in school history to qualify for the Olympic Trials.
“I knew if I made finals I’d make trials,” MacDonald said. “Mainly, I wanted to prove to myself and to people that hadn’t seen me dive before that I can dive.”
Competitors at the championships included Olympians Troy Dumais and Chris Colwill, but MacDonald tried to keep the stiff competition off his mind.
“It didn’t really affect me as much as I thought it would,” MacDonald said. “When you’re on the side everyone’s just chilling, no one is put on a pedestal.”
MacDonald’s calm demeanor on such a grand stage was no surprise to teammate Bryant Wooten, who considers the trait one of MacDonald’s major strengths.
A redshirt sophomore, Wooten said he has benefited from MacDonald’s leadership on the team.
“It’s great being able to ask him questions in practice and have him coaching us on the sidelines,” Wooten said.