Swim and dive: Hentschel springboards Olympic skills to Ohio State

Ohio State women’s swim and dive participant Lena Hentschel can owe her success in the pool to an unorthodox background: her father’s career as a professional weightlifter. 

A 5-year-old Hentschel joined her father at a gym near their home in Berlin and was encouraged to join the swim and dive team practicing in the same facility.

Fifteen years later and with countless accolades won, Hentschel stood on the podium at the 2020 Olympic games in Tokyo with a bronze medal around her neck. 

“I can’t really describe the feeling because it was just overwhelming,” Hentschel, now 22, said. “To have that medal in your hand that you always dreamed of, you dream about that goal to become an Olympian, and then winning a medal, it’s the cherry on top.”

The event Hentschel took bronze in was 3-meter synchronized swimming, a two-person event focused on intricate dives with both athletes looking to do nearly identical dives with increasing difficulty. 

Now at Ohio State, Hentschel has gone from the individualistic nature of the Olympic games to a more team-oriented atmosphere.

“It was a little intimidating because all of a sudden, I am a part of an 80-head team, which I had never been a part of,” Hentschel said. “The national team [in Germany] is 11 people, and we didn’t always train together. I practiced at home with five people, and I came here, and suddenly, there were 80 people in the weight room.”

Ohio State swim and dive head coach Justin Sochor said the transition between the two climates was an eye-opening experience for Hentschel. 

“You have to come in and be ready to go and separate yourself from the practice you’re used to,” Sochor said. “Whether it was a good day or bad day, there are so many things you have to balance, and I think that was one of the biggest differences.”

Hentschel and Sochor first interacted at various international swimming and diving events, as Sochor and Hentschel’s club coach shared a friendship. These initial meetings paved the way for Hentschel’s future as a Buckeye. 

“I was someone that had proven to her coach that I had high-quality training and that he could trust me,” Sochor said.

Hentchel’s choice to become a collegiate athlete in America was very last minute, but a decision that he believes will pay off, Sochor said.

With all of her success in the springboard aspect of diving, Hentschel had to undergo training to become a well-rounded swimmer and diver. No longer just focused on synchronized swimming, Hentschel began to practice other events when she arrived at Ohio State. 

It’s a change of routine that will give her further success at the next Olympic games, Hentschel said.

“It was tough for me, at first,” Hentschel said. “But platform diving has definitely helped with my springboard performance because both are connected and have similar dives but different takeoffs. I basically restarted my platform career, which is actually really fun.”

At Ohio State, Hentschel has earned All-Big Ten Second Team, a third-place finish in the 3-meter dive and second-place in the 1-meter dive at the NCAA Championships.

The change of pace between individual to team training will only help Hentschel going forward, Sochor said.

“I am going to help her narrow her focus to these next Olympic games,” Sochor said. “So, I think when she learns other disciplines and builds her athleticism, her skills will pay off when doing 3-meter synchronized.”

Hentschel is not the first Olympian coached by Sochor but is the lone Olympian diver on the women’s team, an accolade that garners nothing but respect from her teammates.

“The Olympic medal is something that is her own, and she doesn’t show it off,” Sochor said. “She’s an amazing teammate, and she is super happy to be where she’s at.”

Even with all of her prior success in the Olympics and at Ohio State, Hentschel said she is focused on one goal: winning another medal in 2024. 

“It isn’t just a part of my life — it is my life,” Hentschel said.