Two Coaches.
One High-Performance Vision.
Podium Diving Training Center is led by Head Coaches Manny Pollard and Wenbo Chen, combining modern athlete development with decades of Olympic-level coaching experience.
Together, they have built a high-performance environment focused on technical excellence, individualized development, and preparing athletes to succeed at the national, international, and Olympic levels.
Their shared mission is simple: develop athletes who are prepared to compete at the highest level.
Manny Pollard
Manny Pollard is the Head Coach and Co-Founder of Podium Diving Training Center, where he leads athlete development, performance strategy, and the program’s competitive direction.
Before founding Podium, Manny served as an Assistant Diving Coach at the University of Texas and previously as Head Diving Coach at the University of Illinois. In 2024, he made history as the first Black diving coach to represent Team USA at the World Aquatics Championships in Doha.
At Podium, Manny has helped develop Junior National champions, national medalists, international qualifiers, and athletes selected for Team USA competition. His coaching approach blends technical development, physical preparation, confidence, and individualized athlete progression.
A former three-time NCAA All-American diver at the University of Minnesota, Manny also holds a Master of Science in Sport Management from the University of Texas at Austin and is a NASM Performance Enhancement Specialist.
His mission at Podium is to develop athletes capable of competing at the highest levels of the sport.
Credentials & Highlights:
2024 Team USA World Championships Coach • Former University of Texas Assistant Diving Coach • Former University of Illinois Head Diving Coach • 3× NCAA All-American Diver • M.S. Sport Management, University of Texas at Austin • NASM Performance Enhancement Specialist • Coach of Junior National Champions, National Medalists, and International Qualifiers
Head Coach / Co-Founder
Wenbo Chen
Head Coach / Co-Founder
Wenbo Chen is the Head Coach and Co-Founder of Podium Diving Training Center and brings more than four decades of elite coaching experience across the Olympic, international, collegiate, national, and junior levels.
Wenbo has coached Olympic medalists, NCAA champions, national champions, All-Americans, and international competitors throughout his career. He previously coached within the Chinese National Team system and later served as Head Coach of USA Diving and Associate Director of the USA Diving National Training Center.
He has also served on multiple U.S. Olympic coaching staffs, including the 2008, 2012, and 2024 Olympic Games, and has helped guide athletes to Olympic medals.
At the University of Minnesota, Wenbo has developed NCAA champions, Olympians, and numerous All-Americans.
At Podium, he brings decades of technical expertise and high-performance experience to the daily development of athletes pursuing national, international, and Olympic-level goals.
Credentials & Highlights:
3× U.S. Olympic Team Coach • 2024 Paris Olympic Team Assistant Coach • Former Head Coach of USA Diving • Former Chinese National Team Coach • Coach of Olympic Medalists • Coach of NCAA Champions • Multiple-Time Big Ten Diving Coach of the Year • Coach of Senior and Junior National Champions • Head Diving Coach, University of Minnesota