Laura Wilkinson Is A Hot Olympian Diver

Meet Laura Wilkinson, a two time Olympian diver who is hoping to make it to her third Olympics this summer in Beijing.Laura Wilkinson, who finished the semifinal round Friday of the women’s platform diving event at the USA Diving Olympic Trials with 813.20 points, has a lead over 15-year-old Haley Ishimatsu, who at second place, finished with 757.55 points. The finals will be held Sunday at 2:30 PM, with television coverage by NBC.2000 Olympic Gold Medalist Laura Wilkinson made her debut in Beijing on Wednesday night in the women’s platform preliminary. She progressed to the semi’s in5th place against contender’s half her age. Though she struggled a bit tonight she is safely thru to the finals!

Laura Wilkinson was born on November 17, 1977 in Texas. She was trained as a gymnast growing up, but after a growth spurt in her adolescent years, she was deemed too tall to be a gymnast. Diving caught her eye while she was swimming in a gym pool and saw a female diver training. Soon after, she took up platform diving. In 1995, she became part of the U.S. National Team.Laura competed in the 2000 Sydney Olympics, where she won the gold medal. It was the first gold medal for a female platform diver since 1964.In the 2004 Summer Olympics, she did not medal, and finished in fifth place. She is well on her way to making it to her third Olympics.Laura graduated from the University of Texas in 2001, where she majored in public relations. She married her husband, Eriek Hulseman, on September 7, 2002.