Dr. Michele Mitchell

Dr. Michele Mitchell, in her 13th year as Head Diving Coach of the University of Arizona Wildcat Diving Team, is the most decorated diver in Arizona history. Michele also holds notable roles in the collegiate and world diving communities, including Chair, NCAA Swimming and Diving Rules Committee, and Chair, USA Diving, Committee for Competitive Excellence

Two-time Olympic silver medalist Dr. Mitchell won medals on the 10-meter platform at the 1984 Olympic Games in Los Angeles and the 1988 games in Seoul, Korea. In 1988 she was inducted into the University of Arizona Athletic Hall of Fame and the International Swimming Hall of Fame in 1995.

A four-time All-American during her collegiate career in 1979-83, Mitchell's accomplishments also include 1986 Sullivan Award Nominee, nine-time U.S. national champion, 1985 World FINA Cup champion, 1987 Pan American Games champion, four-time U.S. Olympic Committee Athlete of the Year honoree, and American record holder for platform diving, 479.40 points for an eight-dive list.

Notably, Dr. Mitchell's Wildcat divers have accumulated numerous CoSIDA Academic All-America honors, 25 All-America honors, 11 Pac-10 titles and in 2008, both Men's and Women's NCAA Team National Championships titles.

Dr. Mitchell's leadership and effort has put the University of Arizona diving program on the map. Prior to her arrival, Arizona had recorded a total of just 10 NCAA top-16 finishes among the men and women combined since 1978. In her first 12 years at Arizona, the Cats have put up 16 top-16 finishes on the men's side and 13 on the women's.

Among some of the honors Mitchell's divers have brought to the team are Lindsay Berryman, second-team Academic All-American in 1999 and 2001, Claire Febvay, earning third-team Academic All-American laurels in 2003, Daniela Bemme, earning a first-team All-American honor for platform diving at the 2004 NCAA Championships and an All-Academic Honorable Mention, Omar Ojeda, runner-up in the 3-meter at the 2001 NCAA Championships, the best NCAA finish for a UA men's dive. In 1999, Lindsay Berryman was named the Pac-10 Women's Diver of the Year, and a year later, Berryman won the conference title on the platform, becoming the first UA women's diver to garner a Pac-10 championship. In addition to the Wildcats' successful 2005-06 season, Tiffany Manning helped the women's team to a first place finish at the 2006 Pac-10 championships by taking the 10-meter crown. She has been named Pac-10 Men's Diving Coach of the Year for four of the last 12 years.

Dr. Mitchell has also shared her knowledge of the sport through television. Her television resume includes the 1992 Olympic Trials and Games, the 1994 and 1995 NCAA Women's Championships, and the 1993 World University Games. During the summer of 1996, she anchored the in-stadium radio broadcasts for diving at the Olympic Games in Atlanta and was the bungee jump analyst for the ESPN X-Games.

An avid promotional and motivational speaker, Mitchell's past clients include McDonald's, Nabisco, United States Diving, the U.S. Olympic Committee, as well as many civic and charitable organizations. She also holds positions on several other committees and foundations including the United States Diving Foundation, the United States Olympic Committee Athlete Support Committee and the Women's Sports Foundation Grant Review Committee and currently holds Chairperson postion on the NCAA Rules Committee and the USA Diving Committee for Competitive Excellence. She is also on the University of Arizona Hall of Fame Committee and the Equity and Student-Athlete Welfare Committee.

Dr. Mitchell earned her undergraduate degree in English, with a minor in Athletic Coaching and Secondary Education, from the University of Arizona in 1983. She received her Master's degree in Sports Administration from Arizona in December of 2000 and earned her Doctorate in Education Psychology in May 0f 2007. Together Michele and her husband Robb have 2 daughters, Ariana, and Tierney, and a son, Dakota.