MARQUETTE, Mich. - Tobie Stiles, a freshman on the Northern Michigan University swim and dive team, has had quite the start to his first collegiate semester. You might know him for his amazing dives, as a fellow student in your classes, or even recently breaking a diving record that stood for well over 40 years at NMU (1980). Stiles embraces the busy college lifestyle, juggling the consistent dive practice, focusing on schoolwork, and making time for the people most important in his life. 

We sat down with Stiles to learn more about his busy lifestyle, how his first semester has been, his approach to dealing with the mental blocks that ultimately come with diving, and how he fell in love with diving and gymnastics.  

Stiles started gymnastics when he was around five years old after being inspired by his sister's enjoyment, where he then competed for Jam Hops in Minnesota. "It's kind of a small gym, not too small, but I competed there since I was 11," he said. In his sophomore year of high school, his PE teacher noticed that he was involved in gymnastics and mentioned it to the swim and dive coach. After having talks with the teacher and coach, he attended a few practices and quickly learned that he really enjoyed it. 

Those next few years, he committed to competing in both gymnastics and diving. When asked about how he handled the commitment of those sports, school, and maintaining relationships, he said that time management was a big factor. "Going to class and then diving practice from 2:30 to 4:00, then gymnastics from like 5 to 8, and then homework, it was – I don't know, it can be hard on the body and mind. But, I got through it."

One of Tobie's greatest highlights that he noted was just last year when he earned his national cut in gymnastics. He was able to travel down to Mesa, Arizona to compete against others across the country. Another achievement was making States during his high school diving career. "Making States was just pretty big for me too. For my sophomore, junior, and senior year, I got I got 7th my sophomore yeat, hunior year I got third, and then my senior year I got 4th." 

His college diving career so far has been full of accomplishments, including improving his score in the 3-meter dive throughout every meet. When asked about his thoughts on breaking NMU's 1980 record for the 1-meter dive, he responded, "Yeah, I had no idea. I was kind of going to dive and just have fun… I already cut for 11 dives but I needed a 6 dive cut for nationals and it was kind of in the back of my mind. But, I wasn't really worried about it because we already have a couple more meets." Stiles wasn't aware that he broke the record until a half an hour after the meet had ended when his head diving coach, Chris Kelly, shouted it out to the team. 

Stile's view on the new coach, who graduated from Grand Valley State University in 2021, seems to be one that many others have: he's a great addition to the team and understands the sport better than others. "He's adapted really well to all of us being crazy. I like him a lot and him being so fresh from a diver, he understands what it feels like in our point of view. What often helps him, he remembers…so, he conveys that to us," stated Stiles. 

Mental health is a huge part of our humanity, especially for student-athletes. Taking time to hang out with his friends and for himself is how Stiles handles the struggles that are thrown his way. In the water is somewhat of a different story. "It's definitely tricky because some days you're just gonna feel off and things you do are just not going to work and are not right, obviously. [You] just have to teach yourself that like the next day is going to be better. It's just for me, it's just adapting and changing your routine." Stiles mentioned how working up from the easier things to the harder ones in hopes to becoming more comfortable is definitely a way to train your brain to understand the task differently. 
 
Teammates, family, friends, and his girlfriend are the people that Stiles included when asked about his motivators and support system. He mentioned how his parents have always had his back whenever it comes to athletics, or even life in general. They pushed him to try out different sports to see what ones he felt the most passionate about. After attempting baseball and soccer, he found that gymnastics and diving were the ones that he enjoyed the most. Since competing for NMU, they have attended the Green and Gold meet which was held in early October and the Saginaw Valley/Grand Valley meet at the end of October.

You can catch Tobie's next performances with the Men's and Women's Swim and Dive Team at the Calvin College Invitational from December 1st through December 3rd.