Brandon Loschiavo

{{Short description|American diver}}

{{Use mdy dates|date=August 2024}}

{{Infobox sportsperson

| name = Brandon Loschiavo

| image =

| caption =

| birth_date = {{birth date and age|1997|05|31}}

| birth_place = Huntington Beach, California, U.S.

| death_date =

| death_place =

| height = 5' 6"

| occupation= Early career Diving Coach

| sport = Diving

| event = Platform specialist

| collegeteam = Purdue University

| coach= {{nowrap|Derek Starks (Nadadores)}}
Adam Soldati (Purdue)

| club = Mission Viejo Nadadores

| medaltemplates =

{{MedalSport|Men's diving}}

{{MedalCountry|the {{USA}}}}

{{MedalCompetition|FINA Diving World Cup}}

{{MedalBronze|2022 Berlin|10 m platform}}

{{MedalCountry|the Purdue Boilermakers}}

{{MedalCompetition|NCAA Championships}}

{{MedalGold|2021 Greensboro|10 m platform}}

}}

Brandon John Loschiavo ({{IPAc-en|ˌ|l|oʊ|ʃ|i|ˈ|ɑː|v|oʊ}} {{Respell|LOH|shee|AH|voh}}; born May 31, 1997){{cite web |url=https://olympics.com/en/paris-2024/athlete/brandon-loschiavo_1954192|title=LOSCHIAVO Brandon|date=2024 |access-date=11 August 2024}} is an American former diver who competed for Purdue University and represented the United States in 10-meter platform diving at both the 2020 Tokyo and 2024 Paris Olympics. He was an NCAA Champion on the 10-meter platform in 2021, and pursued a career as a diving coach after graduating from Purdue.

Early life

Loschiavo was born on May 31, 1997, in Huntingdon Beach, California, the youngest of three siblings to Laura and Steve Loschiavo. He began taking gymnastics at the age of four, following in the footsteps of his mother Laura.{{cite web|url=https://forward.com/culture/473843/brandon-loschiavo-jewish-olympic-diver-tokyo/|title=Keene, Louis, August 2021, Forward Magazine,Twists and turns: How a Jewish gymnastic prodigy became an Olympic diver|website=forward.com|access-date=May 24, 2025}} Loschiavo's father Steve excelled in track and field, and his mother was a gymnast. Lochiavo had older siblings Michael, who excelled in track, and Amy who excelled in pole-vaulting, with both earning Division I scholarships.

High School and Mission Viejo Nadadores era

After a back injury sidelined him for a while as a gymnast on the parallel bars at age 12, Loschiavo took up diving after attending a summer diving camp in Long Beach, California. He graduated Huntington Beach High School, training as a diver all four years. At age 15, he was practicing both platform and springboard diving with the exceptional program offered by the Mission Viejo Nadadores, where he was coached by Derek Starks. The Mission Viejo facility was around 20 miles Southeast of his Huntington Beach area home. Competing as a 5' 3" High School Freshman in the conference's first meet, Brandon bettered the Sunset League Conference's record for diving points and subsequently captured the title for the League. Competing as a 14 and 15 year-old age group competitor in springboard while in High School in 2011-12, Loschiavo placed first in AAU 3-meter national titles both years, while competing for Long Beach's McCormick Divers Club . Loschiavo may have received some instruction from Debbie Lynn McCormick at McCormick Divers who coached the team in the 2011-12 time frame.{{cite web|url=http://mccormickdivers.com/wp/?page_id=219|website=mccormickdivers.com|title=Coaches, McCormick Diving|access-date=May 24, 2025}}

In Sunset League competition in 2013, he competed as the only diver for Huntington Beach High's Swim and Dive team as very few meets open to high school competition featured platform diving, and Loschiavo was trained almost exclusively by the Nadadores.{{cite web|url=https://www.ocregister.com/2013/05/16/hb-diver-15-makes-splash-in-his-first-year/|title=Balan, Jeremy, Orange County Register Online, May 16, 2013, H.B. diver, 15, makes splash in his first year|website=ocregister.com|access-date=May 24, 2025}} Demonstrating considerable focus, he attended swim practices as often as six days a week throughout High School. At 17, Loschiavo continued to represent California's outstanding Mission Viejo club, while competing in the 10-meter diving semi-finals at the AT&T National Championships in Knoxville, Tennessee in August, 2014."Swimming, AT&T National Championships", The Knoxville News Sentinel, Knoxville, Tennessee, August 16, 2014, pg. 20

=Purdue University=

Loschiavo competed in diving for Purdue University from 2016-2021 under Head diving coach Adam Soldati, taking some time off for Olympic training. Loschiavo graduated from Purdue in 2021 as a Communications major. As a Purdue Senior in the 2020-2021 season, he was an NCAA titlist and elected as an All-American in platform diving, an event in which he excelled. He won the NCAA national title in Platform diving in Greensboro in March 2021, with a score of 469.05 points, making him only the fourth Purdue diver to win an NCAA title, and the first in the Platform event since 2015.{{cite web|url=https://www.swimmingworldmagazine.com/news/coaches-vote-adam-soldati-2025-national-scholastic-and-collegiate-trophy-winner/|title=Coaches Vote Adam Soldati 2025 National Scholastic And Collegiate Trophy Winner|website=swimmingworldmagazine.com|access-date=May 23, 2025}}

As a Junior for Purdue, he was a National Champion for USA Diving in the 10-Meter platform, and 10-Meter platform synchronized diving, and part of the first team in Platform for the Big-10 Conference. As a Sophomore in the 2017-18 year, Loschiavo received an honorable mention as an All-America diver in Platform, and was a titlist in platform competition for the Big Ten conference. As a Freshman in the 2016-2017 season, he was an voted an All American in Platform diving.{{cite web|url=https://www.swimmingworldmagazine.com/news/brandon-loschiavo-leads-1-2-purdue-finish-with-bramley-to-win-platform-diving-ncaa-title//|title=Brian Loschiavo leads Purdue Finish with Bramley to Win Platform Diving NCAA Title|website=swimmingworldmagazine.com|access-date=May 24, 2025}}

International diving highlights

Following is a table depicting a few of Loschiavo's career diving highlights prior to the 2020 Olympics, in meets open to international competition.

class="wikitable"

!Event

!Points

!Medal

!Age*

!Competition

!Comp Country

!Date

Men 10m Synchronised

|420.66

|Bronze

|20

|FINA/CNSG Diving World Series 2018

|CAN

|April 27, 2018

Men 10m Platform

|442.70

|Bronze

|21

|FINA Diving Grand Prix 2019

|USA

|April 13, 2019

Men 10m Synchronised

|416.04

|Silver

|21

|FINA Diving Grand Prix 2019

|USA

|April 14, 2019

{{cite web|url=https://www.worldaquatics.com/athletes/1021941/brandon-loschiavo|title=World Aquatics, Results Page, Brandon Loschiavo|website=www.worldaquatics.com|access-date=May 24, 2025}}

In other career high points, Loschiavo was a national champion in platform diving in two years. He was a synchro champion in USA Diving competition in five instances, and as noted previously, captured the NCAA platform title in 2021. At the World Championships, he competed in the 10-meter Platform in the three years of 2019, 2023, and 2024. In the 10-meter Platform Synchronized event at the World Championships, he competed in 2017, and 2023.{{cite web|url=https://www.teamusa.com/profiles/brandon-loschiavo-997639|website=teamusa.com|title=Team USA, Brandon Loschiavo|access-date=May 24, 2025}}

Loschiavo broke a scaphoid bone on a dive prior to the 2016 Olympic trails, which affected his desire and ability to compete as an Olympian, and an 18-month recovery affected his diving performance. He also had issues with knee injuries during his diving career.

Olympics

=2020, 2024 Olympics Trials=

On June 12, 2021, Loschiavo qualified to represent team USA in the 2020 Summer Olympics, at the 2020 Olympic trials in Indianapolis, competing in the Men's 10m Platform event, placing first in the nation-wide competition.{{Cite web|title=Diving LOSCHIAVO Brandon|url=https://olympics.com/tokyo-2020/olympic-games/en/results/diving/athlete-profile-n1331875-loschiavo-brandon.htm|url-status=dead|access-date=August 3, 2021|work=Tokyo 2020 Olympics|publisher=Tokyo Organising Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210731131913/https://olympics.com/tokyo-2020/olympic-games/en/results/diving/athlete-profile-n1331875-loschiavo-brandon.htm |archive-date=July 31, 2021 }}{{Cite web|title=Brandon LOSCHIAVO | Results | FINA Official|url=http://www.fina.org/athletes/1021941/brandon-loschiavo|access-date=August 3, 2021|website=FINA}}{{Cite web|title=U.S. Trials: Brandon Loschiavo wins men's platform with ease | NBC Olympics|url=https://www.nbcolympics.com/videos/us-trials-brandon-loschiavo-wins-mens-platform-ease|access-date=August 3, 2021|website=nbcolympics.com}} Winning the trials by a comfortable margin, his best dive was a 3 1/2 sommersault tuck, and he scored a total of 1421 points awarded by the judges. Loschiavo faced further challenges at the Olympics, however, as the U.S. team was not strongly favored to medal or place highly in the event as a result of stiff international competition.{{cite web|url=https://www.ocregister.com/2021/06/15/huntington-beach-high-graduate-brandon-loschiavo-makes-u-s-olympic-team-for-tokyo/|title=Orange County Register Online, Albano, Dan, June 16, 2021, Huntington Beach High graduate Brandon Loschiavo makes U.S. Olympic team for Tokyo|website=ocregister.com|access-date=May 24, 2025}}

Finishing second at the U.S. Olympic Trials in Knoxville, Tennessee to Carson Tyler for the 2024 Olympics, he was not originally guaranteed a spot on the Olympic team. The U.S. was not originally awarded a quota spot in the men's 10 m platform for two divers, but a last minute athlete withdrawal led to the U.S. being awarded a quota spot and Loschiavo was added to the U.S. Olympic Diving Team and did compete at the 2024 Paris Olympics in Platform diving.{{Cite web|title=Brandon LOSCHIAVO added to US Olympic Team|url=https://www.usadiving.org/news/2024/july/26/brandon-loschiavo-added-to-u-s-olympic-team-on-10-meter?fbclid=PAZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAAaYjkj2RRZdqTxk4raRa2NOO80avxctbsTmjyVBEwmPnho56gv177hK5mz8_aem_Nwu6mAoFS_v6Os1mthsdcw |date=July 26, 2024}}"Diving, 2024 Summer Olympics", Press of Atlantic City, July 27, 2024, pg. B5

2020 Tokyo Olympics

Loschiavo competed in the 2020 Olympics in 10 meter platform diving, for the U.S. team, where he placed 11th overall in the event, and did not make the finals. The event was held in late July 2021, as a result of a delay due to the COVID epidemic.

With the American team not expected as a strong medal contender, Chinese divers took both the gold and silver medals, and the best place of an American finisher was Jordan Windle with a ninth place overall.{{cite web|url=https://www.olympedia.org/athletes/147410|title=Olympedia Biography, Brandon Loschiavo|website=olympedia.org|access-date=May 24, 2025}}

2024 Paris Olympics

Loschiavo competed for the U.S. Olympic team at the 2024 Paris Olympics where he finished 17th in Platform diving.{{cite web|url=https://www.swimmingworldmagazine.com/news/michigan-hires-two-time-olympian-brandon-loschiavo-as-diving-coach/|title=Michigan Hires Two-time Olympian Brandon Loschiavo as Diving Coach|website=swimmingworldmagazine.com|access-date=May 24, 2025}}

Coaching

Loschiavo served as an assistant coach while at Purdue on a voluntary basis. Immediately after graduation from Purdue, Losvhiavo worked for two years at clubs in Los Angeles including the Trojan Dive Club and briefly served as an assistant coach at Mission Viejo Nadadores. In 2024, he served as an Assistant Dive coach at the University of Missouri, where four of his divers performed well enough to compete at the NCAA national championships.{{cite web|url=https://mutigers.com/news/2024/8/23/mens-swimming-and-diving-mizzou-adds-two-time-olympian-brandon-loschiavo-to-swimming-diving-staff.aspx|website=mutigers.com|title=Mizzou Adds Two-Time Olympian Brandon Loschiavo to Swimming & Diving Staff|access-date=May 24, 2025}}

In May 2025, Loschiavo was announced as an assistant diving coach at the University of Michigan.

=Honors=

In his Senior year at Purdue, Loschiavo was a Big 10 conference and gold medalist in platform diving. In the same year, he was the recipient of the Big 10 Medal of Honor and was the Purdue Athlete of the year for male competitors.{{cite web|url=https://purduesports.com/sports/mens-swimming-and-diving/roster/brandon-loschiavo/10354|title=Purdue University Boilermakers Swimming and Diving, Brandon Loschiavo|website=purduesports.com|access-date=May 24, 2025}}

References

{{Reflist}}