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Published on 07/20/1998 All articles from this issue

Los Altos diver Blukis hitting his mark

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By Vincent Tsai

Town Crier Editorial Intern

Diving from an immense platform may not seem appealing to most people, but for Gordon Blukis, it's almost like second nature.

The Los Altos resident spends much of his time on the high dive. And this dedication to the sport is paying off.

Blukis, who's entering his junior year at Homestead High, has won back-to-back Central Coast Section diving titles.

Next up for Blukis is the Zone Championships in Mission Viejo, which start a week from now.

Blukis reached the Zone meet by making waves at the Regionals earlier this month. Blukis won two events and placed in two others in the boys 16-18 category.

Blukis took first in both the 3-meter and the platform tower with scores of 474.00 and 440.65, respectively.

"It's good to see my hard work pay off. But I cannot be satisfied. I still can improve myself," Blukis said.

Stanford's deGuerre Pool hosted the Regional meet, and for Blukis, it was almost like home.

After all, he practices and trains there almost daily with Stanford University's acclaimed diving coach Rick Schavone.

"It was really a blast diving in front of many of my friends and family. That gave me an incentive to do well," Blukis said.

If Blukis excels at the Zone Championships, he moves on to next month's Nationals in Florida. The top six competitors in each Zone event automatically qualify for the Nationals.

"The Zones will be very challenging. There are definitely several Olympic-bound athletes competing," Blukis said.

Blukis said he acquired a love for diving as an 8-year-old at Montclaire Elementary School.

By junior high school, Blukis had made his mark in the diving world, reaping a host of trophies in county and state tournaments. At the high school level, he has dominated the CCS. But Blukis said he's not finished yet.

"I always believe that I can get better. If I can reach my potential, I'll be an excellent diver," Blukis said.

And that's exactly what Blukis has been feeding off of: a combination of hard work and determination.

"I welcome any challenge. I especially love learning the very hard dives and I let everything else work itself out," Blukis said.

For the future, Blukis' prospects look exceedingly bright. While he may have the option to try the professional circuit, he hopes to attend college first.

"There are many excellent divers in college, and I would be lacking in experience if I don't go to college. And depending on how I do in college, I will make my decision about the pro tour," Blukis said.

However, right now, Blukis must keep things in perspective and work on what needs to be done.

"I look at every day one at a time," he said. "I can't be caught up in what is going to happen. I must make it happen."