Laura Wilkinson, an American diver, was born on 17 November, 1977. She was originally christened Laura Ann Wilkinson and is a native of Houston in Texas but currently resides in The Woodlands, Texas.
She was born to Ed and Linda Wilkinson and has a brother, Rob Wilkinson. Laura Wilkinson married Eriek Hulseman, an assistant swim coach who was also her best friend, on September 2002. She claims that her marriage to Eriek was one of the highs of her life as he has helped bring stability to her life. She has two pet dogs, Charlie and Sam, and two pet cats Nikki and Callie.
Laura Wilkinson went to the University of Texas at Austin and graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in Public Relations.
She started out with gymnastics when she was a child, but had to give up on the sport because of a growth spurt during puberty that made her too tall to continue. Laura Wilkinson was looking for an alternate sport just like gymnastics that would let her compete barefoot. While swimming in the gym’s pool, she noticed a female diver execute a brilliant dive, and this incident led to her developing an interest towards the sport. Eventually, Laura Wilkinson took up platform diving and then joined the U.S. national team in 1995.
She has received 10’s in the 107B, 307C, 407C, 5253B, 305C, 5231D, 403b, 103B, and synchro 103B in the 10 meter event. She registered 451.20, her best score in 10 meter, at the 2008 Olympic Trials. The highest scoring single dive by Laura Wilkinson came at the 2008 US Olympic Trials in 307C, where she scored 102 points total and received seven perfect 10's.
Laura Wilkinson was a National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Champion, in 1997 and 1999. She was the Goodwill Games Platform Medalist in 1998, making her the only American diver to win a Goodwill Games Gold Medal in history.
She has received eight All-American honors and was the ESPY Nominee in the 2000-Female US Olympic Athlete of the Year. Laura Wilkinson secured a gold medal at the 2000 Sydney Olympics by finishing first in the 10 m platform. She was the recipient of the 2000 US Olympic Spirit Award and was named as the USA Diving Athlete of the Year in 2000, 2004, and 2005. In 2004, she emerged as the gold medalist in the platform event at the World Cup. At the 2006 World Championships held at Montreal, she scored the most points in the 10 m platform event and took away another gold medal. With this impressive performance, Laura Wilkinson became the only woman in history to earn all three titles in the platform event. On June 26, 2008, she qualified as a member of the 2008 U.S. Olympic team in diving, taking first place in the Olympic trial. At the 2008 Beijing Olympics, she competed confidently against opponent divers, who were much younger than her to finish ninth in the Women's 10m Platform Final.
Laura Wilkinson is a member of the Woodlands Diving Team and is coached by Ken Armstrong, who is also the head coach of the club. Jessica Livingston, a fellow diver, is her partner for 10 m synchro events. Her favorite dive style is the 307C (reverse 3 ½ tuck). Laura Wilkinson is known by the nickname LaLa, LaLa the diver, and Wilkie in the professional diving world.
Her hobbies include drawing, writing, watching movies, and reading books. When she is not busy with diving, Laura Wilkinson keeps herself engaged by surfing the internet, going to the movies, listening to music, talking to friends, and more.
