Olympian Katie Bell has been honored as the recipient of the 2012 Wendy Wyland Award of Excellence, as selected by USA Diving’s athlete representatives.

The award is presented in memory of 1984 Olympic bronze medalist Wendy Wyland and recognizes a diver, male or female, who represents the following qualities:

- A love for the sport
- An extremely hard worker
- Exceptional competitive ability (a tough competitor)
- Courage in dealing with adversity; A rare determination and tenacity
- Ability to come back from injury or illness
- A never quit attitude
- Respect for fellow competitors
- Performance beyond expectations

As a freshman at Ohio State in 2007, Bell was competing at her first Big Ten Championships when she got lost on a dive, collapsing a lung and dislocating her ribs. The injury kept her out of the pool for some time, taking its toll not only physically but mentally as well. There were thoughts of retiring from the sport, but she didn’t give up. She was back in the water in 2009, when she won her first national title with a victory on the 10-meter platform at the AT&T National Championships that summer. Just six months later though, she suffered a shoulder injury and was out of the water yet again.

She persevered and was back in action at the 2011 USA Diving Winter National Championships, where she finished second on 10-meter. She equaled that finish at the 2012 Winter Nationals – and again at the 2012 U.S. Olympic Team Trials, where the 24-year-old Bell saw her Olympic dream become reality. She finished 16^th at the Olympic Games in London.