With Fifth, Delaney Schnell Scores The Best Finish For The U.S. In Women’s 10-Meter Platform Since 2004

By age 11, Schnell was winning national diving titles. Then as a freshman at Tucson High School, she won the state diving championships. Before she had even entered college, she qualified for world championships.

Schnell stayed close to home for college, matriculating at the University of Arizona, where she was named Pac-12 conference women’s freshman diver of the year. Coach Dwight Dumais came to the Wildcat program from the University of Texas because of Schnell.

“I took the job [of diving coach] at the University of Arizona because she was just that gifted,” said Dumais. “Then it was just trying to get her to buy in to what I was trying to teach, and that's really a credit and a testament to her. After a whirlwind of three years, this has been an incredible ride.”

With the Wildcats, Schnell won two NCAA titles in 2019, then a bronze medal in 10-meter at world championships later that year, becoming the first American woman to win a world championship medal in that event since Wilkinson in 2005.

Schnell redshirted the following year to prepare for the 2020 Olympic Games. When the Covid-19 pandemic postponed the Games for a year, Schnell decided to return to college competition. 

“As we started to lose more and more meets across the world, the college season started to open up,” explained Dumais. “So we actually pulled the trigger to compete in the NCAA, to gain all the competitive experience that she could.”

Schnell finished second in the 10-meter platform dive at 2021 NCAAs and fourth in the 1-meter competition. The disappointment gave her “that extra little push” going into Olympic trials.

“It taught me what I shouldn't do coming into the Olympic trials and the Olympics,” she said, “and I was able to take that and run with it.”

In her first Olympic event last week — synchronized 10-meter platform — she and Parratto won the silver medal. 

“The day right after synchro I let all the emotions sit in, but then the next day I really just tried to make sure I focused on the next event,” Schnell said. “I think it took a lot of pressure off that I’ve already won a silver medal and now I can just enjoy it and dive for myself.”

In the 10-meter finals, Schnell finished third on her first dive — a back 2 ½ somersaults with 1 ½ twists. She also finished third with her forward dive, scoring a few 9s from the judges. But she was just a bit off on her other three dives, which allowed Wu and Mexico’s Gabriela Agundez Garcia to move by her in the standings.

Still, Schnell competed with a smile. In a diary entry before the 10-meter platform diving competition, she noted that her grandfather once told his cardiac doctor that his granddaughter would be an Olympian.

“I know my family is already so proud of me,” she wrote. “My grandpa predicted I’d make it this far, and I know he is looking down on me from heaven and smiling. In honor of him, my family and friends, I will keep that smile on my face as I compete tomorrow in the preliminary event.”

“He always loved supporting my diving,” she said after finals. “He passed away six years ago today, so it's kind of weird that I'm competing today.”

Schnell and Dumais now look toward the Olympic Games Paris 2024. Although Schnell completed her undergraduate degree in June, she still has two years of NCAA eligibility so will enter a master’s program at the UofA in speech language pathology.

As for beating the Chinese, Dumais knows the secret. The Chinese are “really good six feet from the water,” he explained. 

“What I mean by six feet from water is how executional they are on their cutouts,” he continued. “It is systematic, it is methodical. It is something that I've really tried to kind of pound into [Delaney’s] head. 

“That's what makes [the Chinese] lethal. If you watch them, they go through the water with zero splash whatsoever. And that's why you get the nines and 10s.”

It’s a message that Schnell will work on for the next three years as she pockets this experience from Tokyo.

“I think this Olympics is really good to get me ready for Paris,” she said. “It also shows me what I'm capable of doing come three years from now, so that's really exciting.”

Want to follow Team USA athletes during the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020? Visit TeamUSA.org/Tokyo2020 to view the medal table, results and competition schedule.