Going Off the Deep End with Olympic Hopeful Brandon Loschiavo

HC Purdue:  Tell me a little about yourself?

Brandon:  My name is Brandon Loschiavo, and I am a freshman here at Purdue. I am from Huntington Beach, California, which is in Orange County. I am the youngest of three, where I have an older brother named Michael and older sister named Amy. I am also a student athlete here on the diving team. I am very excited to compete for Purdue this year. 

HC Purdue: So how did your diving career start?

Brandon: Well, originally I started out as a gymnast. I was 4 years old when I started gymnastics and competed in the sports for about 9 years.  It is actually very common for a lot of divers to make that transition from gymnastics to diving. Personally for me, I believe the atmosphere for diving is a lot more relaxed which I really enjoy, especially while competing. It is very different from gymnastics where the sport is always serious, and I think I would have ended up hating it if I continued. I liked the whole sport of diving and especially the camaraderie of all of the other divers. It was something that really drew me in. 

HC Purdue: What are you studying here at Purdue?

Brandon: So, currently I am studying public health and my original idea was to follow in the footsteps of my mom. She’s in the medical management industry, but I have since changed my mind after shadowing her and realizing how boring her job is. I am switching my major to either sociology or communications. I haven’t decided yet which one I want to go with. My main goal is to become a diving coach and see which major would be the best to achieve that. 

HC Purdue: What is your favorite part about Purdue and why do you love it so much?

Brandon: My favorite part would have to be the diving program here. I like the way it is set up. If I need to work on something or tailor it to my specific diving needs, my coach Adam Soldati can work with my schedule and accommodate to my needs. Adam, my coach, is one of the main reasons I chose to come to Purdue. I felt that here I am able to not feel pressured with my academics and have a great balance of school and athletics, allowing me to succeed. I am also a big fan of how all of the sports teams are so close. As I went to visit other schools, I did not see other teams interact with each other and I really liked that about Purdue. I instantly was able to meet and make other friends outside of the diving team. 

HC Purdue: What is your specialty in diving are you a springboard or platform diver?

Brandon: So usually my main event is platform individual. But right now, especially going into world championships this summer and eventually the Olympics, I have been focusing on synchronized diving with Steele Johnson. Him and David Boudia took silver at this past Olympics in Rio.

HC Purdue: Being an Olympic hopeful what do you have to do in order to see yourself compete at the next Olympics in 2020?

Brandon: I will do a lot of preparation with some important people. First would be my weight trainers, they are going to get me stronger, more explosive, and in top performance shape. Next, my physical therapist helps fix my broken body because I previously broke my wrist. I have tendonitis in both of my knees and I kind of fall apart all the time. And finally, my coach Adam helps me mentally, to be a motivator and with my technique. I am trying to follow in the footsteps of David Boudia who also dove here and had quite the diving career.

HC Campus Purdue: What had being a student athlete taught you and what drives you to get up each to pursue your dreams?

Brandon: Well, it builds characters for sure. I have never learned how to push myself so hard at anything other than my sport.  I am so passionate, especially now that I have been getting back into diving off the ten-meter platform after being injured. I have also learned not to just think about myself. I am not only trying to reach my goal but  I am also doing this for everyone who has helped me; my family, friends, and anyone who has supported me over the years. I have a lot of appreciation for others and self-motivation is very important to me, learning how to push myself when I am in a hard spot or the worst situation. Especially when I broke my wrist, I remember thinking if I should even keep going or if I would get into a worse situation. There were a lot of setbacks, and I think learning from those made me a stronger and better individual in the end. 

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