From Breck to the Olympics to Coaching NCAA Division I: Abel Sanchez ’90

Can you introduce yourself?

My name is Abel Sanchez, and I graduated from Breck in 1990. I am the Head Diving Coach at the University of Arkansas in Fayetteville.

Tell us about your journey from Breck to where you are now.

After graduating from Breck, I attended the University of Michigan and was a diver for the Wolverines. We won the Big Ten title all four years I was there and the national championship in 1995. After Michigan, I moved to Florida to finish my diving career. From there, I was selected to be an Olympic diver for Peru, my father’s home country, in 2000 when the games were in Sydney, Australia. I met my wife, Leanne, after the Olympics when I coached in California. When we were newly married, we moved to New Mexico, and I got my master's in architecture and coached there until 2012. I took the head dive coach job at the University of North Carolina and was there for six years. I left UNC for Canada, where I was the CEO/Head Diving Coach at Dive Calgary, Dive Canada, and Rocky Mountain Diving. In 2020, Niel Harper, Arkansas’s head swim coach, contacted me and asked me to take over the dive program. I started at the University of Arkansas in the 2021–2022 season.

What was your favorite moment of being a diver at the Sydney Olympic Games in 2000?

There are so many favorite moments, but the one that sticks out the most in my memory is when all of the athletes participating in the summer games stood together in the center of the field. They had a huge flag they had us under while the torch-lighting ceremony was happening. When that flag was over us, we were athletes; we were people who had sacrificed and worked hard to be there, and I really connected with others around me. I don’t think there was a dry eye in the stadium. I also loved the camaraderie I felt in the cafeteria. You could be sitting next to a three-time Olympic medalist or someone who got dead last the night before, and you wouldn’t know any of that. We were more interested in where people were from and who they were.

What are your hopes for your Razorbacks this dive season?

The goal is always to keep moving up. Right now, we are ranked 22nd in the nation. It would be wonderful to be in the top 15 or higher at the end of the year. I have a great group of kids diving at Arkansas, and we hope to continue to recruit strong divers into the program.

Are there lessons you learned at Breck that you share with your divers?

Definitely! I teach my divers not to put limitations on themselves and to not label themselves. Having a mindset that anything is possible is a lesson I learned at Breck, and I share that as part of my coaching philosophy.

Do you have any favorite memories from Breck?

I remember my senior year, we went to a camp for a senior weekend. That was awesome! The Breck teachers that I had were always amazing. I also loved soccer. We had a good soccer team and tons of fun. I also remember [Upper School Dean] Rob Johnson ’90. He was a really good friend!

Is there anything we missed?

I am a blessed person. I have had amazing coaches and have traveled the world. I give so much credit to the people I’ve met and the coaches who have invested in me. I also have a beautiful family that I am so thankful for! 

Abel Sanchez has numerous awards and accolades in the diving world. He lives with his wife, Leanne, and children: Bryze, a freshman diver for the Razorbacks; Maizie, a highly sought-after Razorback diving recruit; and Rio, an up-and-coming golfer. The Alumni Office had a great time interviewing him!