WEST POINT, N.Y. (May 27, 2010) -- Lindsey Adao spent her cadet career diving into everything headfirst with zeal and moxie that led her to being an ambitious cadet and one of the greatest divers in the history of the Army swimming and diving program. Now, Adao takes all her lessons learned at West Point and dives into her professional career as a signal corps officer after graduating from the U.S. Military Academy May 22.
Graduation was a day of reflection and celebration while emotions overflowed as Adao was recognized as the female Army Athletic Association Trophy winner and got a chance to briefly speak with President Barack Obama as he gave Adao her diploma.
Her experience meeting the president lasted about 15 seconds, but it felt like more of a blur to Adao when reflecting on the moment.
"I was on stage and as I was getting closer to the podium, I was getting more excited," Adao said about meeting the president. "It felt like I blacked out to where I didn't really remember much from the time I was (next) in the holding line to the time I saluted the president.
"I didn't hear my name called, it just kind of happened," she added. "It was very thrilling and a huge rush to get to be on stage with the president, shake his hand and talk to him a little."
While Adao's experience of receiving her diploma and meeting the president was a bit hazy, her career on the diving board was exceptionally memorable in the annals of Army diving.
Adao, who didn't start diving until her junior year of high school, finished her collegiate career with two Patriot League "Diver of the Year" (2009 and 2010) awards when she finished in first place at the league championships in the 1-meter and 3-meter springboard dives in consecutive years.
During her dual meet career, Adao finished with a 50-17 record in the 1-meter dive and 45-22 record in the 3-meter dive. She went on to compete at the NCAA Zone A Championships all four years of her career while completing her diving career as the Patriot League, Army and Crandall Pool record holder in the 1-meter springboard event.
Adao's success earned her the coveted AAA Trophy that is given to one male and one female athlete in the graduating class. She is the fourth member of the swimming and diving program to earn the award and first diver to win it, so it was a special moment for Adao to get recognized as the best female athlete in the Class of 2010.
"The last person on the swim team who won it was Chelsea Haviland (in 2006), so to be put on the same level as her in some respect is truly an honor," Adao said. "I was so excited when I got that e-mail (saying I won it), I read it six times before calling my mom to tell her."
The New City, N.Y., native, which is about 20 miles from West Point, turned out a great collegiate diving career despite the fact she was an All-American gymnast and debated on continuing that career in college at Penn State.
However, she spurned Penn State for the U.S. Military Academy because she found a niche on the diving board when she competed with the West Point Diving Club her junior and senior years of high school. The club is part of the U.S. Diving age group club for 18-year-olds and younger, and her two years with the club team helped develop her burgeoning skills.
Jonathan Johnson, the former Army diving coach, got her to join the pilot diving program and then interested in coming to the academy. Also, with the help of a friend, Noah Pincusoff, an Army enlisted Soldier, she was convinced to look seriously into West Point.
Adao chose the academy, but once she got here the coach she thought would be guiding her left and a new coach arrived, Ron Kontura, and the butting of heads began.
While they both looked at things at the opposite end of the spectrum, they eventually came together on things that helped her become very successful.
"I admit I was stubborn, very stubborn," Adao said. "I drew a line and I was not crossing it, but it helped that someone wanted me to cross the line. What helped the most with these new ideas he threw out that he and I knew I was uncomfortable with is it helped us come up with new solutions.
"He wanted me to do a new dive, but I didn't want to do it but I knew I didn't want to do my old dive, either," she added. "That's how we came up with the (reverse one-and-a-half twisting one-and-a-half) in the middle of the (Lehigh) meet (my junior year). I had always been apprehensive to try new dives and I was so scared going into it but it just happened. It became a consistent dive for me and something I never again worried about."
Adao said that dive and performance at Lehigh was one of the best of her career next to her 1-meter and 3-meter wins at the Patriot League finals this year. Although, Adao admits she would butt heads and have philosophical differences on diving with Kontura, she said that he was right about changing up things that led to more successes.
Adao laughingly said her coach won and he was right, however, Kontura looked at it from a different perspective.
"I didn't win, that's not what it's about," Kontura said. "It's about getting her to reach her potential, wherever that is at a given moment. It's the key to coaching, which is taking individuals and getting them to where they can go and maximize their abilities."
Kontura admits Adao was one of the most frustrating athletes he's ever coached, but always knew she had the ability to be the best.
"Lindsey came to West Point as an individual who for the majority of her childhood trained as an athlete," Kontura said about her 15 years spent in gymnastics prior to the academy. "She is a very strong athlete and was built to be a diver. Gymnastics really set her up for success.
"By far, she's the most talented athlete that West Point has ever had from the diving perspective," he added. "In terms of athletic ability, she is as good as it gets for women in the NCAA. (Her gymnastics career) was valuable and led to her winning many (diving) awards. That training she did when she was 10, 11 and 12 years old reaped a lot of rewards at the academy."
Kontura said Adao grew a tremendous amount while at the academy as a diver and would trust her coaching right now.
However, more so than coaching, he believes she will make a great Army officer as the new second lieutenant heads into the signal corps.
"She is very good in front of people and presenting herself in a professional manner that really commands respect and notice-she handles herself really well," he said. "She's very well versed and says the appropriate thing at the appropriate time. Her enthusiasm about living that goes with it and with that comes a lot of intrinsic values that you can't really quantify.
"Diving aside, it's been great getting to know her and watch her grow from a teenager to a woman," Kontura added. "Lindsey's matured so much over the years and it's going to be a joy to continue to get updates from her and see how she is doing. I expect nothing but great things from her in the future in whatever she does."
Adao moves on to a future that includes Fort Campbell, Ky., where she will live with her husband, 1st Lt. Alan Colvin (Class of 2008), who she married Sunday, and lead troops once she completes her Basic Officer Leadership Course at Fort Gordon, Ga., that starts July 28.
For her, it's an exciting time knowing she will lead Soldiers while the Army has a foothold in places like Iraq and Afghanistan.
"It's such an honor to get to do this in the time we're doing it," Adao said. "People have different motivations coming here, especially during a time of war, but all my classmates stepped into West Point knowing exactly what they're getting themselves into and, to me, it really means something to get to serve with people who are motivated.
"It means a lot to me to get to work with people who are making the sacrifices they're making day in and day out, deploying time and time again, separated from their Families," she added. "I'm very lucky and feel very fortunate that I'm going to get to work with people who are doing this because they want to do it."
Graduating was a symbol of transition for Adao. Adao grew up in the Hudson Valley region and will now move away from the home she's always known.
Adao spoke about her mother, Roberta, being scared and fearful for Lindsey on R-Day back in June 2006.
Her mother is proud of what she has become through the academy's guidance and how successful she became, not only in diving but academics and being on the Brigade Staff in the Morale, Welfare and Recreation position her firstie year, during her time at West Point.
"I was very hesitant about her coming here and I didn't know if she was coming for the right reasons, but she so proved me wrong and I'm so proud of her for it," Roberta said. "There is still trepidation (with what the future holds), but I feel she is prepared to do what she is about to do and I can't be more proud."
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