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Soldati, Kimiko
- 2004 United States 3-Meter Champion
- 3-Meter Champion at the 2004 U.S. Olympic Trials
- First in both the 3-meter and platform competitions at 2002 World Cup Trials
- 2001 and 2002 U.S. Diving Athlete of the Year
- Became the first woman to advance to the finals of all five diving events at the 2000 Outdoor Nationals
- Spokesperson for the Annual Making Strides for Breast Cancer Event in Houston, TX.
- Dives for Coach Kenny Armstrong, who also coaches 2000 gold medalist Laura Wilkinson.
- Married to fellow diver Adam Soldati, whom she met at their alma mater, the University of Indiana. The two run the Indiana Diving and Youth Development program for kids ages 6-18.
- Had the honor of carrying the flag at the 2001 World University Games
- 2002 national champion on 3-meter.
- Says her two favorite things are working out and food. She even built a bigger house and incorporated a larger kitchen.
- Started her own weight program with Paul Fleschler of USA Weightlifting, then brought her newfound knowledge back to her diving team by starting everyone on an abdominal, dry land and weights program.
- Her ancestors come from Japan, and her father, Gary, was born in a U.S. interment camp.
- Her mother, Judy, battled breast cancer for eight years and passed away in 1991 during the summer before Soldati’s senior year of high school.
- Before winning the NCAA 1-meter championship and being awarded female athlete of the year, she had never even come close to qualifying for the NCAA Championship Meet.
- 2001 Goodwill Games bronze medalist on 3-meter and the 2002 World Cup silver medalist on platform.
Soldati began her Olympic dream as a talented gymnast, but was devastated by a serious knee injury at the age of 15. After enduring a year of rehabilitation, her father suggested she switch sports and try diving. She decided to try out for her high school diving team and found considerable success in her new sport. She was recruited to dive at Colorado State University, even though she didn’t even know diving was a college sport at the time! She later transferred to the University of Indiana where she became the 1-meter NCAA champion. A shoulder injury in 1995 kept her out of the pool for over two years, and she wasn’t 100 percent recovered again until December of 1998. However, she persisted with her rehab, refusing to let her Olympic dreams slip away.
Related Links:
Official website of Kimiko Soldati
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Height: 5' 1
Born: 4/10/1974
Hometown: Magnolia, Texas
Resides: Magnolia, Texas
Sport: Diving
Event: 3-meter, platform
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