Athletic Hall of Fame

Tom Michael

Sport(s): Coach, Swimming and Diving

Induction Class: 2014

One of the most outstanding divers in Mid-American Conference history...Five-time MAC Diving Champion...Three-time MAC Diver of the Year (1984, 1985, and 1986) and EMU team captain in 1986...USA Diving National Qualifier in 1986...Dove professionally, around the world, from 1986-1994, in most of the major theme parks including Disneyland Park-California and the Berlin Circus in Germany...In 1992, started his own professional diving company, Aquaventures Entertainment, based in Rennes, France...In 1994, was crowned the World High Diving Champion in Silver Springs, Florida and was later featured on ABC's "Wide World of Sports"...Returned to EMU as the men's and women's diving coach for six years (1994-2000), earning Mid-American Conference Diving Coach of the Year in 1996 and 1997 while coaching six conference champions and one conference diver of the year...In 2000, he went on to coach in the Big Ten Conference at Northwestern University for six years and University of Wisconsin for five years...Coached internationally with USA Diving at the 2001 Junior Pan-American Championships in Mexico City and the USA vs. Canada Junior Challenge in 2001, 2002, and 2003...Inducted into Mason Consolidated Schools High School Athletic Hall of Fame in the inaugural class of 2010...In 2010, moved to Australia to become the head coach of the Victorian High Performance Program in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia...In Melbourne, he has coached seven individual Australian Junior National Champions, two pairs of Junior Synchronized Diving Champions, one Senior National Champion and many other junior medalists...Coached the Victorian Teams internationally in the Asia-Pacific Rim Championships in Wellington, New Zealand and the Australian Junior National Squad at the New Zealand Junior and Senior Nationals

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