Laura Wilkinson

Laura Ann Wilkinson, born on 17 November 1977, is an American diver, three-time Olympian and Olympic gold medalist, and the first woman to win the three major diving world titles. Raised in Houston, Texas, she was a gymnast until a growth spurt ended that path, and she did not make her first 10 metre platform jump until she was fifteen. Six months before the 2000 Summer Olympics she suffered a serious foot injury, yet she went on to earn the first gold medal for a female American platform diver since 1964. She placed fifth in 2004 and ninth in 2008, when she retired, then came back in 2017 to place second at the national championships and trained for the 2020 Games without qualifying. She also worked as a diving analyst for NBC Sports.