This open letter comes from USA Diving President Lee Michaud, who is responding to an open letter penned by former NCAA diver and current diving coach David Hoffer last month.
Opinions in this article do not reflect the views of SwimSwam.
Dear Mr. Hoffer,
I read your open letter on SwimSwam with a mix of disappointment and resolve. Disappointment—not because you raised concerns, but because you chose to publish a public critique without first seeking clarification or context from those directly responsible for USA Diving’s direction. A simple phone call or email could have opened a constructive dialogue. Instead, we were met with assumptions and inaccuracies that do little to advance the sport we both care deeply about.
Let me be clear: I welcome feedback. Constructive criticism is vital for growth. But when that criticism is based on misunderstandings or omits key facts, it does a disservice to the entire diving community.
Understanding Roles and Responsibilities
Your letter suggests a fundamental misunderstanding of the roles within USA Diving. As President, I oversee the organization’s day-to-day operations, aligning our activities with the strategic directives set by our Board of Directors. This includes compliance with the United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee (USOPC), World Aquatics, and United States Aquatic Sports (USAS). It’s a complex ecosystem that requires careful navigation, especially when balancing the needs of athletes, coaches, and stakeholders.
Financial Management and Transparency
You expressed concern over financial struggles and fee increases. It’s important to note that USA Diving is a non-profit organization. Our financial decisions are made with sport’s sustainability in mind. Fee adjustments are never taken lightly and are implemented only after thorough analysis and consideration.
Regarding my compensation, the figures you cited from our IRS Form 990 are misleading. I joined USA Diving partway through the fiscal year, and the reported salary reflects a prorated amount. Additionally, the total compensation includes standard benefits and any performance-based incentives, all of which are in line with industry standards and approved by our Board.
Competitive Performance
Critiquing our athletes’ performances on the international stage is not only unfair but also counterproductive. These athletes dedicate their lives to representing our country, often with limited resources. Publicly questioning their efforts undermines their commitment and the sacrifices they make. If there are concerns about performance, let’s focus on systemic improvements rather than targeting individuals.
Communication and Member Engagement
I acknowledge that our communication with members hasn’t always met expectations. That’s changing. We’ve implemented several initiatives to enhance transparency and engagement:
- Board Meeting Minutes: Now distributed via email to keep members informed.
- Direct Updates: Regular emails from my office provide insights into ongoing projects and decisions.
- Town Halls: We’ve increased the frequency of these sessions to foster open dialogue. In fact, you were invited to our recent town hall. Participation in these forums is crucial for voicing concerns and contributing to solutions.
Youth Development and Coaching Programs
Looking ahead, we’re excited about our partnership with the US Diving Foundation to launch a comprehensive youth and junior development program. This initiative aims to identify and nurture young talent, providing them with the resources and coaching necessary to excel at the highest levels. Additionally, we’re developing an online coaching education program based on all of the great information that has been compiled over the years to ensure our coaches are equipped with the latest techniques and knowledge.
An Open Invitation
Mr. Hoffer, I applaud your willingness to accept my invitation to speak directly by phone. I was encouraged by the candid conversation and I extend an open invitation to you and others with concerns to engage directly with us. Attend our town halls, reach out via email, or schedule a call. Constructive dialogue is the pathway to meaningful change. Let’s work together to strengthen USA Diving for current and future generations.
Sincerely,
Lee Michaud
President, USA Diving
USA Diving has cited high insurance cost of young age junior divers. Why not let AAU run age group C/D? There are not much international competition at level. Or simply just cut off the whole junior level to AAU?
If Lee can’t run something efficiently, why not let other capable people/organization run it?
Blah blah blah….why even respond to “an open letter”. That is just a fancy name for a complaint.
Two thoughts:
Communication shouldn’t be that hard if you are leading a national organization. If you’re getting paid a big salary “in line with industry standards and approved by our board”, then at some point you should have learned to communicate effectively to an organization with many stakeholders. I get that sometimes the old, don’t change anything, get off my lawn crowd in these organizations can make leading tougher, but again, that’s why one gets paid the big salary, to lead. If communicating with your organization means that your job gets harder then you aren’t leading effectively. I’ve been around the USAS conventions when an organization tried to sneak one by, and it didn’t go well. And I’ve been around… Read more »
For the record, AAU Dive meets are actually organized better, cheaper, and without excuses.
I’m not disagreeing with that. My question as to whether AAU would be the answer vs USA Diving is can AAU govern the sport vs just registering athletes and sanctioning meets. I had my swim team only registered with AAU at one point because it was cheaper and easier, so I get it. And for so many people, that is really all you need. But there is more to a governing body than that. And I’m not saying AAU can’t do that. Just don’t know if they would be prepared for that, or if they would even want to do it.
Yeah we’ve had this conversation internally a lot as AAU moves into USA Swimming’s territory as well.
I think the reality is that AAU will face the same issues as USA Swimming/USA Diving. I don’t think there’s anything that’s inherently more capable about AAU. I think the longing is in the competition. If you have one anointed lord of the sport driven by a congressionally-approved monopoly, you get bad governance.
The root cause then becomes Board of Director compalacency/incapability.
I will beat this drum until the day I die: folks need to take BOD elections way more seriously than they do. Right now, CEOs mostly drive the bus on who gets picked for the board when it should be the… Read more »
Replacing USAD is not the point. Why not considering collaboration?
“It’s a complex ecosystem that requires careful navigation, especially when balancing the needs of athletes, coaches, and stakeholders.”
Sounds more like a secretary role than a leadership role. Lee needs to step down.
Ultimately, it’s just not a well run organization it wasn’t before Lee, and even with changes made, it still isn’t. They need to give the Olympic Charter to AAU Diving and dissolve USA Diving. Companies that have been run as poorly as this one has would have been gutted and filed for bankruptcy to start over. AAU Diving has been a mich better experience for athletes, parents, and coaches a like.
The high level divers and coaches in the US have done as well as they have despite how poorly USA Diving has helped and supported them.
The format sure looks like ChatGPT wrote this response…
President Michaud:
A suggestion is to challenge Mr Hoffer to a squirt gun contest at 10 paces. Sell tickets to the Iive event and stream it on Netflix. This will generate excitement for your sport as opposed to the malaise generated via open letters.
For the first time, I agree with this person
Basically the president didn’t answer any questions