2020 silver medalist Jessica Parratto said continuing the legacy of Hoosier diving at the Olympics in Paris means the world to her.
(Aubrey Wright, WTIU)
Paris is a long way from Bloomington, but nearly two dozen Hoosiers are right at home in the 2024 Olympic Games.
Twenty IU athletes are competing in Paris this year, including 17 who train with IU’s swimming and diving program.On Team USA this year, eight IU athletes and two coaches made the cut.
They are upholding a long Hoosier tradition at the Olympics.
An IU diver has competed at the Olympics every year since 1964, according to Hoosier Athletics. IU Olympians won 121 medals — including 60 gold medals — heading into the Paris Olympic Games, which began last week.
“It's quite a legacy,” Senior Associate Athletic Director Jeremy Gray said.
Synchronized 10-meter platform diver Jessica Parratto secured a silver medal in 2020 with partner Delaney Schnell. They became the first American women to earn a spot on the podium in the event.
Parratto and Schnell finished in sixth place after a high-scoring, tight competition. After the event, she told Team USA she’s proud of what the duo accomplished.
“It's been a really special three years,” Parratto said. “Nothing takes away from what we've been able to accomplish. Our Olympic silver medal from last time around and our world medal from last summer. There are so many great takeaways.”
Diver Lesley Bush represented the U.S. during the summer 1964 summer Olympics, in which she won gold. Indiana University divers have competed in every Olympic Games since then. (Indiana University Archives)
This year marks Parratto’s 10th year with IU and her third time competing for Team USA in the Olympics.
She came out of retirement in 2023 to compete again with Schnell, and she's the oldest diver on the team at 30-years-old.
As a veteran, Parratto said younger IU teammates call her “mom” and sometimes even “grandma.” She said seeing the progression of the women in IU’s team has been “incredible.”
“These are my girls,” Parratto told WFIU/WTIU in July. “We have very, very talented women on this team. It's just grown through the years, and not just their ability to be incredible divers, but they're just incredible people. I think that kind of speaks volumes about what we're about at IU.”
Along with Parratto, IU divers Andrew Capobianco and Carson Tyler are competing in Paris. Capobianco earned a silver medal in Tokyo in 2020. This is Tyler’s Olympic debut.
“It's just really cool to have different generations of IU Diving make this Olympics and just to continue that legacy that is just so rich with history,” Parratto said.
Parratto worked as an intern with Gray while she studied sports media. Gray said Parratto has worked part-time jobs, rallied support from donors and found a way to make a living while pursuing her Olympic dreams. She practiced diving and gymnastics, and Gray said she could have swam at IU.
Like any 10-meter diver, Parratto is fearless.
“Whenever you talk about somebody who goes off the 10-meter — and goes off the 10 m for a living — you have to talk about her guts,” Gray said.
The Hoosier representation continues in Team USA’s coaching staff.
IU Head Diving Coach Drew Johansson has led the U.S diving team at the Olympics since 2012. In addition to coaching IU, Johansson leads the national diving team.
“Drew Johansson, without question — and it has just been reaffirmed — is the best diving coach in the United States,” Gray said.
USA Diving Assistant Coach and two-time Olympian Jenny Johansson was selected as Drew Johansson’s partner ahead of the games. The two are the first married pair to coach at the Olympics.
IU Swimming associate head coach Cory Chitwood serves as a coach for open water swimming. Chitwood coached the U.S. to win gold in the 2022 and 2024 open water world championships.
This year, IU swimmer Mariah Denigan will be the first Hoosier to swim in an open water event at the Olympics.
In addition to Parratto, this is the third Olympic competition for IU swimmers Lilly King, Ray Looze, Blake Pieroni and Marwan Elkamash.
“There's just so much support for diving and swimming within the state of Indiana, and at Indiana University specifically as the flagship institution, that it's really set the program apart,” Gray said.
Aubrey is our higher education reporter and a Report For America corps member. Contact her at aubmwrig@iu.edu or follow her on X @aubreymwright.
