UM Student Vying for Olympic Spot

Make room for the "U” because with the U.S. Diving Olympic Trials underway in Seattle, Miami will have five current or former Canes trying to make the Olympic roster.

Two-time NCAA champion Brittany Viola may be their best bet, but it's their youngest gun who could make the biggest splash.

Sam Dorman is one of the fastest rising stars in diving. The 20-year-old University of Miami sophomore arrived as one of the Canes’ most accomplished recruits.

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"I've won two or three national titles and second in a few," he said.

Dorman has been diving since he was eight and his domain is the 3m springboard.

"I've definitely improved so much faster than I thought,” he said.

So much so, that the mechanical engineering major heads to the Olympic Trials cautiously optimistic against the country's best.

"My goal in these Trials is to make top eight, make finals, and just have fun at finals. If I go, I go. If I don't go, then I'm not going to be disappointed,” Dorman said.

"I don't want him going there thinking it is Olympics or failure, so we have a benchmark of making the finals of the meet to be a fantastic finish, but really he has the potential of finishing higher than that," UM Coach Randy Abelman said.

Under the tutelage of longtime UM coach Abelman, who himself made the 1980 Olympic team, Dorman is trying to refine his raw talent and sees a sports psychologist to help sharpen his focus.

"I'll hit a dive 9.95 right there but then I will miss a dive, so the consistency is not there and that is all mental focus,” he said. "Some people, they think too much and they need to stop thinking. I'm not thinking enough."

"He does the hardest dives of anyone in our country and he does them better than everybody, so it's just a matter of putting it together," Abelman said. "He has the talent."

Dorman will chase a spot on the U.S. Olympic Team along with the rest of the University of Miami divers, with broadcast coverage starting June 20 on NBC Sports Network.

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