This Famous TikToker From MTL Does Some Of The Wildest Dives You've Ever Seen (VIDEOS)
When it comes to social media, we're fed all kinds of different content every day. But, Molly Carlson, a Team Canada high diver from Montreal, provides us with some of the highest adrenaline videos out there.
She's raked in 2.3 million fans on TikTok plus 25k followers on Instagram with videos of her flying off a diving board in all kinds of ways.
Editor's Choice: Montreal Unveiled A New 24-Point Plan To Promote French In The City
"Molly is on track to be a top competitor on the World Stage in 2021" for high diving. She also started the inspirational hashtag #BraveGang.
MTL Blog got the chance to get to know Molly a little better, and now we're here to share our interview with you — so you can, too.
Answers have been edited and condensed for clarity.
How long have you been diving? Have you ever gotten injured? If so, what happened?
I started regular springboard and platform (10 Meters) diving in 2008 and continued the sport for 12 years.
I competed for Team Canada in my junior career followed by a four-year division one Florida State University diving career.
During this diving career, I suffered from many wrist injuries and went through six wrist surgeries due to the constant impact from hands-first diving for 12 years.
When I graduated in May of 2021, I knew it was time for me to retire from the regular sport of diving as my wrists couldn't keep up. BUT, there was a spark in me missing.
I decided to follow my long-time dream of high diving as this sport requires feet-first entries from insane heights.
I started high diving in August after moving to Montreal to pursue the dream. After my first ever jump from the 20-meter platform, I fell in love.
Flying, adrenaline, and performance. I do not plan to retire from this amazing sport any time soon. An exciting journey ahead.
What's the wildest dive you've ever done? Were you scared?
My coaching staff and I have done an awesome job at keeping some of my craziest dives a secret to the world so that when we compete them it will be an epic moment.
Let's just say I've done some pretty wild dives off the 20-meter platform including triples in many directions. Was I scared? ABSOLUTELY! There is always a level of fear being up that high knowing you are about to take a leap.
But, my coach, Stephane Lapointe and I have always stuck to our number one rule; only go up for a 20-meter dive when you are physically and mentally prepared.
Learning how to fly your fears in the right direction so they feel controlled and safe allows high divers to execute our bravery in the most elegant ways.
I am also surrounded by two of the most talented female high divers in the world; Lysanne Richard & Jessica Macaulay.
These two brave women inspire me every day with their diving and cheer me on as I enter their amazing sport. Truly an honour to train beside such talented women.
How did you grow such a large following on TikTok and Instagram? What's it feel like to know thousands of people are watching your videos?
When I started high diving, I really wanted to share my dives with the world every time I learned a new one.
Due to our decision to hide a lot of our training from social media, I began to create a lot of behind-the-scenes videos of the sport of high diving. I would post videos walking around in the rafters that hold the lights at the Montreal Olympic Stadium as this is where our platform is attached.Â
After roughly five months of high diving and video creating, we hit 2 million followers on TikTok! A technique I decided to use was creating my own hashtag for all of my brave followers: #BraveGang.
The message I was trying to portray was that you do not need to jump off 20 meters to be considered brave. Bravery comes in all beautiful shapes and sizes and deserves to be celebrated at every level.
With this hashtag, we created a movement allowing individuals to share their own unique beautiful brave stories with the world and know that they had a community behind them supporting them.
This movement brings tears to my eyes every day and I am so inspired by all the "Bravies" in the "BraveGang."
