Photo Courtesy: Peter H.Bick<\/p>\n
COLUMBUS – USA Diving has announced the eight recipients of its annual awards, including David Boudia as Athlete of the Year. The honorees will be recognized at a reception in Columbus, Ohio on Friday, December 19 in conjunction with the USA Diving Winter National Championships.<\/p>\n
David Boudia will receive USA Diving\u2019s Athlete of the Year award for the fifth consecutive year and sixth time in his career. Boudia won the bronze medal on synchronized 10-meter with Steele Johnson at the 2014 FINA World Cup in Shanghai, where he also placed eighth individually on 3-meter and fourth with Sam Dorman in synchronized 3-meter. He also won a bronze medal on 10-meter at a FINA World Series meet in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.<\/p>\n
Sarah Bacon has been named the recipient of the Wendy Wyland Award. Presented in memory of the late 1984 Olympic bronze medalist, the award recognizes a diver who represents the following qualities: A love for the sport; extremely hard working; exceptional competitive ability; courage in dealing with adversity; ability to come back from injury or illness; a never quit attitude; respect for fellow competitors; and performance beyond expectations. In 2014, Bacon returned to USA Diving competition for the first time since 2012 after battling numerous injuries. In her return, Bacon won the 1-meter title at the 2014 AT&T National Diving Championships and also won junior national titles on both 1-meter and 3-meter. She was named team co-captain of the FINA World Junior Diving Championships team.<\/p>\n
Chris Seufert Sholtis will be presented with the Phil Boggs Award, which honors those who have achieved individual excellence in diving and have given back a part of themselves to assure the sport\u2019s continuation and success. A two-time Olympian and 1984 Olympic bronze medalist, Sholtis currently serves on the USA Diving Board of Directors as vice chair of administration. Also a FINA certified judge, Sholtis was the U.S. judge at the 2012 Olympic Games and also judged the FINA World Championships in 2011 and 2013.<\/p>\n
Both Bill Farrar and Terry Robinson will receive the Glenn McCormick Memorial Award, presented in recognition for outstanding contributions to the sport of diving.<\/p>\n
Bill Farrar was a long-time member of the Board of Directors, having served as vice chair of administration and as law and legislation\/governance chair. He was on the selection committee that hired current USA Diving President and CEO Linda Paul as well as her predecessor Debbie Hesse. Farrar has also served as USA Diving General Counsel, and spent time serving on the Board of Review Committee, the Long-Range Planning committee, the Business Affairs Committee and the Member Services Committee.<\/p>\n
Terry Robinson is USA Diving\u2019s head athletic trainer and physical therapist and has been involved with the organization since 1990. He worked on-site with USA Diving at the 1996 and 2012 Olympic Games as well as at 10 World Championships and 11 World Cup meets, most recently at the 2014 FINA World Cup in Shanghai. He coordinates medical team coverage for all national and international diving events and coordinates medical care for AT&T Olympic Performance Squad athletes.<\/p>\n
Matt Scoggin will receive the Mike Peppe Award, given to the outstanding senior diving coach. Scoggin\u2019s Longhorn Aquatics team won the overall team championship title at the 2014 AT&T National Diving Championships, where Murphy Bromberg and Troy Dumais won individual titles and Bromberg, Emma Ivory-Ganja, Mark Anderson and Cory Bowersox won national titles in synchronized events. Scoggin was selected as the head coach of the U.S. team for the FINA World Cup, with Bromberg and Maren Taylor among the athletes on the team. In all, eight of Scoggin\u2019s athletes represented Team USA in international events throughout the year.<\/p>\n
Jeff Bro has been selected the recipient of the Moose Moss Age Group Coach of the Year Award. Bro coached GC Diving to the team title at the 2014 USA Diving Junior West National Championships and his team finished second in the team standings at the 2014 USA Diving Junior National Championships, where GC Diving also won the girls\u2019 team title. Emily Grund, Hailey Hernandez and Jackson Miller won individual junior national championships. Grund and Mackenzie Willborn were selected to represent Team USA at the FINA World Junior Diving Championships, with Bro serving as one of four U.S. coaches in Russia.<\/p>\n
Duke Diving will receive the first Dick Wilson Memorial Award, which will annually honor the most improved junior and age group diving team. Led by six junior national titles apiece from Andrew Capobianco and Jordan Windle, Duke Diving finished fourth as a team at the 2014 USA Diving Junior National Championships. The Duke divers improved their team point total by 114 points from the 2013 junior nationals, when Duke was 21st in the team standings. In 2014, nine Duke Divers contributed points to the team totals at junior nationals.<\/p>\n
The above article is a press release submitted to Swimming World. To reach our audience, contact us at newsmaster@swimmingworldmagazine.com<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n