David BOUDIA

David Boudia is the United States' most successful diver of the 21st century, winning four medals from three Olympic Games. When he won 10-metre platform gold at London 2012, Boudia became the first male American Olympic champion in diving since Mark Lenzi won 3m gold 20 years earlier.

Boudia won his first major international medal in 2007, taking Pan Am Games gold and World Championships bronze in synchro diving alongside Thomas Finchum. An Olympic appearance followed in Beijing, before further success at World Championships level with silvers in 2009 and 2011.

But the big breakthrough came in the British capital in 2012, when he came from 18th in the preliminaries – the last diver not to be eliminated – to stun world champion Qiu Bo and home favourite Tom Daley in the 10m platform final. It was the first diving gold medal for the U.S. since Laura Wilkinson's women's 10m gold in 2000.

After two more medals – silver and bronze – in Rio four years later, Boudia took time off from diving. Upon his return to competition, a serious concussion suffered after a training incident led the diver to change tack, switching to the lower 3m springboard. "Training 10m was a little mundane and pushing the 3m springboard added some extra motivation," he said.