Ball State University Athletics
Former BSU Diving Coach At Olympics
August 22, 2008 | Men's Swimming and Diving, Women's Swimming and Diving
MUNCIE, Ind. - - As the diving competition winds down in the 2008 Olympics, former Ball State University diving coach John Wingfield, who is currently the head coach of the USA Olympic Team and the director of the national training center in Indianapolis, will look to guide Americans David Boudia and Thomas Finchum to success on the Men's 10-meter platform after the pair advanced from Friday's preliminary round.
“John accomplished so much in his ten short years here at Ball State University, it was incredible,” BSU co-head swimming & diving coach Bob Thomas says. “What he has accomplished since he has left, I'm not surprised. John was a great teacher of the sport, a great motivator to his athletes and had a passion to succeed. We were very fortunate to have someone of John's caliber work with our student-athletes.”
“John is one of the most amazing and innovative coaches I have had the pleasure of working with,” BSU co-head swimming & diving coach Laura Seibold-Caudill says. “Ever since his first days at Ball State, John has dreamed of coaching at the Olympics. His dedication, drive and persistence have taken divers to some of the highest levels of competition in the MAC, the NCAA's and now the Olympics. It was truly a pleasure to have John as a coach with our men's and women's diving team and now it's even more exciting to see his dreams of Olympic coaching come true.”
Wingfield, who spent nine seasons as a diving coach for the BSU men's team and five seasons as the women's diving coach, was a seven-time Mid-American Conference Diving Coach of the Year (1990-91, 1991-92, 1992-93, 1993-94, 1994-95, 1996-97, 1997-98) at Ball State. Wingfield left the BSU program after the 1997-98 season to become the director of U.S. Diving's first training center at the Indiana University Natatorium in Indianapolis.
Under his guidance, BSU divers earned a total of nine MAC Diver of the Year awards (eight male and one female). In addition, he coached the program's only College Swimming Coaches of American All-American in Dave Keener. Keener earned All-America honors in 1994 by virtue of an eighth-place showing on the 1-meter diving board at the NCAA Championships. Keener was also a three-time CSCA All-American Honorable Mention, earning the honor on the 3-meter board in 1992-93 and the 1-meter board in 1992-93 and 1993-94.
Wingfield's USA Olympic divers, who were sixth (Boudia) and seventh (Finchum) in Friday's preliminary round, will look to advance to Saturday night's 10-meter finals. First the pair has to get past the semifinal round which is scheduled for 10 a.m. Beijing Time Saturday.
