LSU Gold

Celaya-Hernandez Earns Spot on Mexico Olympic Team

BATON ROUGE, La. - LSU diver Juan Celaya-Hernandez and his partner Yahel Castillo will represent Mexico in the three-meter synchronized diving event at the 2020 Olympics, the Federation announced. 

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Celaya-Hernandez Earns Spot on Mexico Olympic Team

BATON ROUGE, La. – LSU diver Juan Celaya-Hernandez and his partner Yahel Castillo will represent Mexico in the three-meter synchronized diving event at the 2020 Olympics, the Federation announced.

Celaya-Hernandez is the 16th Tiger to qualify for an Olympic Games. Brooks Curry also became an Olympian Thursday night after qualifying for the United States in the 100 free. Celaya-Hernandez joins Guy Sandin (Puerto Rico, 1996) and Lizzie Cui (New Zealand, 2016) as Olympian divers at LSU. It also marks LSU diving coach Doug Shaffer’s second Olympian.

“It’s been a dream of Juan’s to qualify for an Olympic Games,” Shaffer said. “Today, this became a reality when Mexico officially announced their team for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. I am so proud and honored to have been a part of this journey with Juan. His pursuit and dedication have been relentless. Now I know his focus is to stand on the podium in Tokyo representing his family, his country and LSU.”

Celaya-Hernandez, a native of Mexico, has been one of the most consistent athletes to come through any LSU program, holding several school and SEC records in the one-meter and platform dive. He also competed at a high level in championships, winning five SEC championships, three on the one-meter springboard alone. Celaya-Hernandez also currently holds the LSU record on the three-meter springboard.

At the end of the 2020-21 regular season, the SEC office announced Celaya-Hernandez as the Male Diver of the Year for the second time. His first came in his freshman year when he broke a school record in his first meet against Auburn on the three meter. He has accumulated 13 Male Diver of the Week honors and has made the All-SEC First team four times.

The 2020 Tokyo Olympics are set to begin July 23 and run through August 8.