Cornell University Athletics

Four-time Olympian and 10-year diving instructor Veronica Ribot-Canales joined the Cornell coaching staff as the second Richard W. Gilbert Head Coach of Diving in June of 2007.

In her first seven seasons, Ribot-Canales has coached and recruited Phillip Truong, the men's school record holder in both the men's 1-meter and 3-meter competitions. Her divers have posted eight of the top 10 marks in both events on the men's side, eight of the top 10 in the women's 3-meter dive and six of the top 10 in the 1-meter.

The only female diving coach in the Ivy League, Ribot-Canales was the technical expert for the live streamed coverage and commentary for the men's 3-meter final event at the Ivy Championships in 2015.

Ribot-Canales earned a spot in the Olympic finals with appearances in 1980 (Moscow, Russia), 1984 (Los Angeles, Calif.), 1988 (Seoul, South Korea) and 1992 (Barcelona, Spain), with best finishes of eighth on the platform and 10th on the springboard, both at the 1992 Games. She was the only female competitor to make finals in both events in Barcelona. She is a 12-time South American champion (1980-92) while competing for her native country of Argentina, winning championships on the 1-meter and 3-meter springboards and the platform. Ribot-Canales later captured a pair of U.S. national titles in the 3-meter in 1992 and 1993 before retiring in 1996 after her fourth year as a member of the U.S. national team. 

After retiring from competition, Ribot-Canales formed Team Olympia, a dry land conditioning program that included theory of diving. That program later expanded to a diving training program. She started Bianca Alvarez in diving (she was previously a gymnast). Alvarez, a two-time age group national champion, became the most sought after high school recruit in the country in her senior year. Along with her work with Team Olympia, Ribot-Canales also served as a summer swimming instructor at the Montessori Camp of Kendall (2000-02) and ran the Veronica's Olympia Kids swim school for infant and toddler swimming lessons since 1998. She also spent a year teaching physical education for the Miami Dade County Public Schools, and has served as an aerobics instructor/personal trainer. 

Ribot-Canales was selected by her peers to be on the first professional judges panel at the women's NCAA championships in 2007, and she has been a FINA certified international judge since 2007.  She served as the U.S. judge for the World Cup in China in 2010 and the World University Games in China in 2011, as well as judging the Canada Cup and the Fort Lauderdale Grand Prix several times.

A 1983 graduate of Southern Methodist with a degree in physical education, Ribot-Canales has two children, Lucas (17) and Olympia (15). 

*Updated March 19, 2015