By SwimSwam Contributors on SwimSwam
SwimSwam welcomes reader submissions about all topics aquatic, and if it’s well-written and well-thought, we might just post it under our “Shouts from the Stands” series. We don’t necessarily endorse the content of the Shouts from the Stands posts, and the opinions remain those of their authors. If you have thoughts to share, please send them to [email protected].
This “Shouts from the Stands” submission comes from David Hoffer, a former collegiate diver at Arizona State and the current head coach of South Mountain Dive Club.
Like nearly all diving coaches, I too was once a young diver who found my passion bouncing on the boards with my friends as part of a club team. We spent years laughing side by side while developing our skills, traveling to meets, and pushing ourselves (and each other) to reach our highest potential. This sport and its community have given me so much. I had the opportunity to compete and get much of my education paid for at the D-I level as an athlete and GA, met my wife (also a former diver), and now we have our own youth club where we hope to create similar opportunities and memories for young athletes. Unfortunately, over the last few years I have become less and less optimistic about that prospect.
USA Diving has long served as both the foundation for development and the incubator for elite American diving talent. They were the caretaker of our tight-knit community. Its members shared a special bond as part of something unique, mighty, and inspiring. All that which made this so special is at great risk under USAD’s current leadership. President Lee Michaud and the Board of Directors, led by Chairman Dave Gascon, have overseen a period of time where the organization has struggled financially and competitively, communicated poorly, lost public awareness and support, and repeatedly failed to consider or include its membership in any meaningful way. I do not know what, or who, USA Diving actually stands for. I fear that it doesn’t either.
FINANCIAL STRUGGLES & PERCEIVED MISMANAGEMENT
Despite a variety of regular and poorly justified fee increases, the financial health of USA Diving continues to be concerning. Equally frustrating is the timing of these increases as they are often put forth with little notice before championship season. This puts families and clubs that have already committed to events and travel in a tough spot. And it calls into question the financial management of an organization that feels pressed to spring such adjustments on its members.
USA Diving justified its initial fee hikes in 2020 by promising investments in technological advancements—those improvements have yet to materialize. With the most recent fee increase, USA Diving is now adding an assistant neutral judge at JO Regionals (and possibly Zones), further increasing costs while failing to provide any tangible benefit to the athletes. In an attempt to offset these costs, USAD is reportedly trying to source these judges locally, which directly undermines the very idea of ‘neutral’ judges due to their likely affiliations with teams competing. After insurance costs fell to $500,000 following an incident-related bump to $700,000, USA Diving somehow still managed to lose almost $200,000 in 2023. Despite these financial concerns, Gascon and the Board have continually approved increased compensation packages for Michaud. According to USA Diving’s 990, Michaud’s compensation has risen from $115,000 in 2020 to more than $243,000 in 2023, including tens of thousands in bonuses and incentives for an organization losing money. This compensation package is far above average for non-profits with similar operating budgets.COMPETITIVE FAILURE
At the highest levels, USA Diving has struggled to remain competitive. Not only has America struggled on the international scene at a variety of competitions, but the NCAA championships are regularly filled with international athletes outperforming Americans.
The US brought home just one medal from the 2024 Paris Olympics, The US failed to earn all of the available quota spots for the 2024 Olympics. ● The struggles of high-performance athletes have led to the USOPC pulling $200,000 in funding for USA Diving, even heading into hosting the 2028 Olympics. Per minutes of the Nov. 17, 2024 Board meeting, “This year, USOPC cut our overall allocation by 25%. Additionally, USOPC will not cover the funds to pay our high-performance staff. USOPC is also asking USA Diving to add an additional staff member for high-performance. The overall cut is the result of our performance at the Olympics.” Just this spring USA Diving essentially forfeited potential spots in the World Aquatics Diving World Cup — Super Final by knowingly failing to send the same group of athletes to both World Cup stops, a prerequisite for advancement to the Super Final.LACK OF TRANSPARENCY & POOR COMMUNICATION
Michaud repeatedly acknowledges his lack of communication with the USA Diving membership, yet continually fails to make change.
In October of 2024, he committed to sending out a monthly newsletter. Those have been inconsistent at best. Michaud reportedly failed to communicate to the Board the recent competition fee increase prior to announcing it to the membership, raising serious questions about internal governance and transparency. In an April 2025 episode of The Diving Pod, Michaud acknowledged his lack of communication. In response to criticism that USA Diving was silent in the face of threats to diving at the NCAA level (including programs being cut) having made no public statements until March 20, he noted that the organization had been working behind the scenes to address the NCAA issues and that they would host a town hall with more information after the House v NCAA case was settled. And in a stunning example of his lack of awareness and leadership, Michaud told the hosts that there was “no need to hit the panic button.” The NCAA is the premier training ground for American Olympians and the sport’s NGB was essentially silent. In addition to having issues locating and posting past Board meeting minutes, there have been no minutes posted for all of 2025.IGNORING THE MEMBERSHIP
Whether Michaud or Gascon is setting the agenda for USA Diving remains unclear. In either case, the direction does not appear to align with USA Diving’s stated mission, or the will of its membership.
Coach members expressed their dissatisfaction with the addition of a single neutral judge to JO Regionals, noting the costs (which raises fees), lack of benefit, and overall confusion of the role. This year, USA Diving doubled down and is adding a second neutral judge against the desires of the coaches. As noted above, in an attempt to offset the increased cost of making this happen, USA Diving has essentially nullified the effectiveness of a neutral judge by attempting to assign them locally and creating possible conflicts. Members have repeatedly been told of upcoming technological advancements, educational curriculum, and other initiatives that members have sought. None of that has materialized. However, a sudden announcement of a partnership to build a new aquatic facility in Fort Pierce, Florida, complete with a 27-meter tower just two hours from the only other such platform in North America, was made in September. This was not something the membership was seeking.While we can applaud the early efforts Michaud made in helping address USA Diving’s financials (struggling to even make payroll when he arrived), the overall performance of the organization under his leadership, and this Board of Directors, has been unacceptable. This group has had ample opportunity to prove it has the capacity to lead our sport into 2028 and beyond, yet they have consistently floundered. USA Diving should value transparency, accountability, and the well-being of all of its athletes and coaches. If the organization is to thrive, it must do so under new leadership—one that prioritizes athletes over administrative paychecks, and accessibility over exclusion. For the future of USA Diving and the community it serves, Lee Michaud must go and the Board of Directors must be overhauled.
Read the full story on SwimSwam: Shouts From The Stands: An Open Letter To USA Diving
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