Adam Soldati

Soldati Scorecard in PDF Format Since his arrival in West Lafayette in the spring of 2005, Adam Soldati has cemented his name among the preeminent collegiate diving coaches in the nation during his 19 seasons at Purdue. Soldati was named the NCAA Diving Coach of the Year and Big Ten Diving Coach of the Year again in 2017 after Steele Johnson swept the springboard diving national titles, joining alumnus David Boudia as the only divers in the country since platform was added in 1990 to win NCAA championships in all three events during their careers. In June 2024, Soldati passed the torch to Boudia as the head coach of the Purdue Divers. The succession plan had been in place since Boudia joined the staff in a fulltime role in the summer of 2021. Soldati's ALS diagnosis in February 2024 led to the succession playing out sooner than anticipated so Soldati could focus on his health and family. Soldati will remain Purdue's director of diving in the short term and continue to assist the program as he is able. In 2012, Soldati helped coach Boudia to two medals at the Olympic Games in London. Boudia won two more Olympic medals four years later in Rio de Janeiro. Boudia won gold on 10-meter in 2012, Team USA's first Olympic gold medal in the men's event since Greg Louganis in 1988. Boudia and Nick McCrory teamed up to win Team USA's first Olympic medal (bronze) ever in synchronized 10-meter. The gold-medal performance earned Boudia USA Diving Athlete of the Year honors again, while Soldati was named USA Diving's National Coach of the Year. Soldati is a five-time CSCAA Diving Coach of the Year (2009-11, 2015, 2017). He is an 11-time recipient of the Big Ten Diving Coach of the Year award. He has won the conference award eight times with the men (2006, 2009-11, 2015, 2017, 2021, 2022) and three with the women (2009, 2014, 2020). Soldati's 11 Big Ten honors are the most among the league's active diving coaches and second most all-time behind only Indiana's Jeff Huber (13). Soldati was selected among the 100 Greatest Coaches of the last 100 years as part of the CSCAA's centennial celebration during the 2021-22 season. He was one of three active Big Ten coaches to make the list. Purdue's 14 NCAA diving titles under Soldati are the most by any university since 2006. Johnson was a two-time NCAA Diver of the Year and three-time Big Ten Diver of the Year. He graduated in 2019 as a five-time NCAA champion after repeating on 3-meter at the 2018 NCAA Championships. Soldati guided Boudia to his third Olympic Games in 2016 and they were joined by Johnson in Rio. Boudia and Johnson claimed Team USA's Olympic bid in synchronized 10-meter and also finished 1-2 on 10-meter individually to sweep the available Olympic berths. They went on to win silver together in Rio, the USA's top individual showing in the event since it was added to the Olympic program in 2000. Boudia also took home bronze individually on 10-meter, becoming the first American man to medal in the event in consecutive Olympics since Louganis (1984-88). Brandon Loschiavo continued the Boilermakers' tradition of excellence on the tower in 2021, becoming an Olympian for the first time while also winning the event at the NCAA Championships and Big Ten Championships. A Boilermaker represented Team USA on 10-meter for the fourth consecutive Olympics and Soldati was on deck as a member of the U.S. coaching staff for the third straight Olympics. Loschiavo returned to the top of the podium at the 2023 USA Diving National Championships, sweeping the 10-meter individual and synchronized events to qualify for his third World Championships. He teamed up with Boilermaker Jordan Rzepka for the synchro victory after Rzepka's 100-point dive in the final round had helped him win the individual 10-meter event a few months earlier at the 2022 USA Diving Winter Nationals. As the NCAA champion on platform as a freshman in 2022, Olympian Tyler Downs became the fifth Boilermaker to win an NCAA title under Soldati. At the 2021 USA Diving Winter Nationals, Downs became the first man to sweep the 1-meter and 3-meter springboard events since winter nationals became an annual showcase in 2010. He was also victorious in 3-meter synchro with Boilermaker Greg Duncan. Loschiavo and Ben Bramley teamed up for a 1-2 finish on platform at the 2021 NCAA Championships. Purdue became the first team to produce the top two finishers in any diving event since Auburn did likewise on the tower in 2005. Before winning on 10-meter at the U.S. Olympic Team Trials, Loschiavo claimed Purdue's 13th NCAA title under Soldati and joined Boudia among the short list of four divers to win the event three times at Big Tens (since platform was added in 1988). Meanwhile, Bramley won bronze on the tower at Big Tens, medaling in the event for the third year in a row. He became just the fifth Purdue diver (men and women) to medal in three straight seasons. Loschiavo and Downs gave the Boilermakers consecutive NCAA champions on platform. Auburn (2004-06) was also the last team to win consecutive national titles in a diving event with a different individual event winner. At the women's 2021 and 2024 NCAA Championships, Maycey Vieta was among the trio of Boilermakers in the championship final on platform. She was joined by Maggie Merriman and Emily Bretscher in 2021 as well Daryn Wright and Sophie McAfee in 2024. The All-American trios made the Purdue women the top-scoring team in the diving events at NCAAs in 2021 (finishing second three years later). With Soldati being the common denominator, the Boilermakers have placed three in the platform championship final at NCAA four times -- the men in 2011 and 2015, the women in 2021 and 2024. Vieta qualified for the 2024 Olympic Games for Puerto Rico, achieving the feat with a top-10 finish in the 10-meter prelim at the World Aquatics Championships in February 2024. She'll be Purdue's first female diver to compete at the Olympics since Mary Beth Dunnichay in 2008. Vieta will also be Purdue's first female diver to do so coming off a successful NCAA season. Boilermakers Jaye Patrick (Latvia) and Wright (USA) also competed at the 2024 World Aquatics Championships. Loschiavo and Bretscher were honored as Purdue Athletics' Big Ten Medal of Honor winners for the 2020-21 school year, marking the second time a pair of divers have been selected as the department's best and brightest. As a two-time Academic All-America honoree, Bramley was selected as Purdue's male Big Ten Medal of Honor recipient in 2022. Vieta won a Big Ten title on the tower and the Big Ten Medal of Honor in 2023. Merriman joined Rzepka, Duncan, Downs and Vieta at the 2022 FINA World Championships in Budapest. Known as the World Aquatics Championships by 2023, Purdue was again well represented with Loschiavo, Rzepka, Duncan and Vieta all qualifying. Sam Bennett and Sophie McAfee also represented the U.S. at the World University Games in the summer of 2023. McAfee won bronze on 10-meter, becoming the first Purdue diver to medal in an individual event at the WUG since 2009. Vieta and Merriman medaled on the tower at both the 2021 USA Diving Winter Nationals and 2022 Big Ten Championships. Merriman went on to finish fifth in the event at NCAAs in 2022 and finished her career as a four-year All-American. Rzepka won a pair of silver medals in his debut at the Big Ten Championships as a freshman in 2022. At the women's meet, Purdue had four of the eight divers in the 10-meter championship final, claiming 109 team points in the event. A year later, the Boilermakers had four of the top 10 finishers on platform as Vieta and Merriman teamed up for the Purdue women's first 1-2 finish in event at Big Tens. Headlined by Big Ten 3-meter champions Duncan and Bretscher, the Boilermakers won a medal in all six diving events contested at the 2020 Big Ten Championships. Most impressive was the women's showing on platform. Vieta (silver) and Merriman (bronze) both medaled as underclassmen, teaming up with Emily Meaney (fourth) and Bretscher (sixth) to give Purdue four of the top six finishers. Meaney was a four-year championship finalist at the event. Thanks to extra season of eligibilty due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Bretscher became a five-year championship finalist on the tower while accounting for a remarkable 300 career team points at Big Tens. She was the Big Ten Diver of the Year and Diver of the Championships in 2020. Six divers that attended Purdue qualified for the 2019 World Championships. Loschiavo (10-meter) and Boudia (3-meter) won USA Diving national titles and clinched bids to the World Championships at Senior Nationals. Bramley also teamed with Johnson for the first time in 10-meter synchro, earning bids to World Championships and Pan American Games. Boudia, Loschiavo and the synchro team of Bramley and Johnson were all finalists at the World Championships, with Boudia and Loschiavo earning 2020 Olympic bids for the U.S. in the process. Alumni David Colturi and Steven LoBue once again represented the U.S. in 27-meter high diving. They've made a combined eight appearances at the World Championships since 2013. Highlighted by the 14 NCAA titles, the Purdue divers have had at least one one female All-American in 17 of Soldati's first 18 years. The men have accomplished the feat in 16 of the 18. For three straight seasons from 2017 to 2019 (and again in 2021), every Purdue diver that competed at the Zone C Championships qualified for NCAAs. Furthermore, the Boilermakers have been represented in all three men's diving events at the national championship meet in every year since the qualifying procedure was changed for Zones beginning in 2015. The women did likewise from 2015 to 2022. The 2020 NCAA Zone C Championships and NCAA Championships were both canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Johnson's 3-meter championship in 2018 made him one of just three men to win at least five NCAA diving titles since platform was added to the national championship meet in 1990. Johnson added an NCAA silver medal on 1-meter and was named the Purdue Male Athlete of the Year and Big Ten Diver of the Year. He won both awards multiple times before opting to turn pro in March 2019. Dating back to 2009, Purdue's men's divers have won seven platform championships and 14 Big Ten diving titles overall. Joe Cifelli closed out his career in 2019 as a four-year NCAA Championships qualifier, joining Matthews as the Purdue divers to accomplish the feat. Loschiavo joined them on the list in 2021 and Duncan did the same the following year. At the 2018 women's national championship meet, Lexi Vincent was a championship finalist again on platform to take home another All-America honor. She and Merriman have joined Michelle Cabassol (2013-14) and Carrie McCambridge (2005-06) as Purdue's female divers to be full-fledged All-Americans in the same event in consecutive seasons. Johnson (3-meter) and Loschiavo (platform) both won Big Ten titles in 2018 to help Purdue place fourth, matching its best-ever finish at Big Tens. Loschiavo won his first career Big Ten title, teaming with Johnson to give Purdue consecutive conference champions on the platform. Colturi (2010) and Boudia (2009, 2011) teaming up to win three straight 1-meter titles at Big Tens from 2009 to 2011 marked the last time the Boilermakers had different champions in the same event in consecutive seasons. Johnson and Loschiavo went on to win the USA Diving national title in synchronized 10-meter to earn a berth at the FINA Diving World Cup in June. Loschiavo also competed individually on 10-meter in China. Johnson represented the U.S. in 10-meter synchro at three consecutive World Championships while competing with three different fellow Boilermakers -- Boudia in 2015, Loschiavo in 2017 and Bramley in 2019. Purdue's men's divers were the top scoring team at both NCAAs and the USA Diving Winter Nationals during the 2016-17 school year. All eight Purdue divers qualified for the 2017 NCAA Championships, with seven going on to earn All-America honors. Cifelli was an All-American on 1-meter and selected to represent Team USA in the event at the 2017 World University Games. Bretscher, Duncan and Emily Meaney (Australia) all competed at the World University Games two years later in Italy. Vincent (fifth) and Meaney (seventh) were platform All-Americans at the 2017 NCAA Championships, making Purdue the only school with two divers in that year's final. Meaney also eclipsed the program record on the tower at the Big Ten Championships. She went on to win silver in the event at NCAAs as a junior in 2019. Mary Beth Dunnichay closed out her career in 2016 with All-America honors on 1-meter (honorable mention) and 3-meter. Sydney Couch and Vincent became Purdue's first female divers to qualify for NCAAs as freshmen since 2009. In the fall of 2016, Purdue's first divers were also inducted to intercollegiate athletics hall of fame. Carrie (McCambridge) Karkoska and Boudia both excelled under Soldati's tutelage and were honored as Purdue hall of famers. At the 2015 NCAA Championships, Soldati guided Johnson (as a freshman) to national titles on 1-meter and platform. Johnson became the first diver since Boudia in 2009 to win NCAA titles on a springboard and the platform in the same year. Loschiavo had an instant impact during his freshman season in 2017, qualifying for NCAAs in all three diving events and scoring on 3-meter and platform to earn All-America honors. In both 2011 and 2015, three Purdue men qualified for the championship final of platform diving at the NCAA Championships, a feat the women duplicated in 2021. Jamie Bissett capped his college career with All-America honors on platform in 2015, coupling that award with First Team Academic All-America accolades. The 3-meter champion at Diving Canada's 2015 Winter Nationals became Purdue's first male athlete since quarterback Drew Brees (in 2000) to be a First Team All-American athletically and academically in the same year. Boudia and Johnson are the only student-athletes to win the NCAA Diver of the Year award multiple times since 2005. Johnson also joined Troy Dumais and Boudia as the only divers to win a pair of national championships multiple times in their careers. The Boilermakers have been represented by at least one diver at the men's NCAA Championships in 16 of Soldati's first 17 years, all but 2012. Purdue has claimed at least one All-America honor in a diving event every year it has had a representative since 2005. Meanwhile, a diver has been selected as the Purdue Male or Female Athlete of the Year eight times during Soldati's tenure. MacKenzie Tweardy, Bissett, Bramley, Bretscher, Loschiavo and Matthews have also been honored as Big Ten Medal of Honor recipients. Soldati was recognized as one of the finalists for the United States Olympic Committee's 2011 and 2012 National Coach of the Year awards. CaptainU.com named Soldati its National Diving Coach of the Year in 2014. Matthews was the 2014 women's Big Ten champion from the 1-meter springboard. She also helped Soldati's divers win nine medals at the USA Diving Winter Nationals in December 2013. Boudia was selected the NCAA Diver of the Year by the CSCAA for the third year in a row in 2011. He finished his career with six NCAA national titles, one shy of the Troy Dumais' all-time record, after winning a pair at each of his three appearances at the national championship meet. In the summer of 2011, Boudia became the first American male since 1986 to medal in the 10-meter platform at the FINA World Championships, winning the first of his three silver medals individually on the tower from 2011 to 2015. He was also selected as the Jesse Owens Male Big Ten Athlete of the Year in 2011, becoming the first diver to win the award and just the second Purdue male student-athlete. At the 2011 Big Ten Championships, Boudia swept the three diving events for the second time in his career. He became the first athlete to accomplish that feat twice since platform diving was added to the meet in 1988. Boudia was named Big Ten Diver of the Championships and Diver of the Year for the third consecutive year. He finished his college career with eight Big Ten diving titles. Boudia's 1-meter victory at the 2010 NCAA Championships made him the first diver ever to win at least one national title from each of the three boards. Colturi was victorious on 1-meter in 2010, adding his name to the list of Purdue's Big Ten champions and keeping Boudia from posting a perfect 9-for-9 sweep of the diving events at the conference championship meet from 2009 to 2011. Soldati believes that success in the collegiate ranks is only the first step for his student-athletes. Not only does Soldati want his divers aspiring to become conference champions and All-Americans, he wants them to see the bigger picture -- the Olympics. And Soldati has the experience to get them there. The Purdue diving program has been recognized as a Center of Excellence by USA Diving. Along with being an assistant coach for USA Diving at multiple Olympic Games, Soldati served as Team USA's head coach at the 2010 FINA Diving World Cup in Changzhou, China. Boudia teamed with Haley Ishimatsu to win the team event, capturing the first gold medal for the U.S. in World Cup competition on Chinese soil since 1985. Boudia then became the first American to top 600 points in a six-dive platform list when he scored 605.40 while winning the event at the AT&T National Diving Championships. Included in that score was a 111.00 total on a 109C that broke the American record for a single dive. Prior to his arrival at Purdue, Soldati worked with Olympic gold-medal coach Kenny Armstrong at the USA Diving National Training Center outside Houston. During his tenure, Soldati worked side-by-side with several Olympians, including Laura Wilkinson, Troy and Justin Dumais, Justin Wilcox, and Kimiko Soldati. As head coach for the Woodlands Diving national team, Soldati guided three divers (J.J. Kinzbach, Harrison Jones and Jessica Livingston) to the finals of the 2004 Olympic Team Trials and five divers (Kinzbach, Jones, Drew Livingston, Jessica Livingston and Whitney Wielgus) to Senior Nationals. Kinzbach also qualified for the U.S. National Team. Soldati finished the summer taking Kinzbach and Jones to the Junior World Championships. Following his graduation from Indiana University in 1997, Soldati founded Indiana Diving and Youth Development while serving as the Hoosiers' assistant coach and diving events director. Both programs succeeded at the highest levels with his involvement. From June 1997 to January 2000, Soldati's club program advanced six athletes to the U.S. Senior National Diving Championships, plus four finalists and eight athletes to the U.S. Junior National Championships and earned one national championship. At the same time, he was helping his Hoosiers win three consecutive national diving titles from 1998 to 2000. Soldati is married to Kimiko Hirai Soldati, who was a member of the 2004 U.S. Olympic Diving Team. The couple has six children -- sons, Blake and Isaac, as well as daughters Maiya and Emiko. They welcomed twins Noah (boy) and Rylie (girl) to the family in January 2014.