On Oct. 22, 2024, Wyoming Valley West High School welcomed back former student-athlete Ibrahim Ismail as head diving coach. Wyoming Valley West Diving is making a comeback. There has not been a dive team since 2020, when the previous coach left. After Coach Mike McGinley’s departure, the position was left vacant—until now, with Head Diving Coach Ibrahim Ismail taking over.

Coach Ismail, who has been around athletics all his life, believes it’s his time to give back to the program. He says, “I feel it’s my turn to step up, and try to bring the program back, and give back to the kids.” According to Head Swimming Coach Edward Zawatski, “He is able to give back to the athletes of today, while also being a loving father.”

Now, as Ibrahim Ismail takes on his new role as head diving coach, he strives to be more than just a coach. He aims to be the kind of mentor his athletes can look up to.

“I hope to be looked at as a role model and a mentor to my athletes, whether on the diving boards or in real life, as my coach was to me,” Coach Ismail said.

As a mentor, Coach Ibrahim Ismail has a plan for his athletes’ success. It starts with the basics of diving, which include spins, tucks and entries with the goal of getting his divers to perform a variety of dives.

“My plan is to coach my kids and push them all to their max potential so that come districts, they are prepared to do their very best and put points up for the team,” Coach Ismail explained. His plan focuses on mastering the fundamentals first. “I will be teaching them the basics about board approaches and takeoffs before they get into basic dives, because they will be scored on every aspect of their dives. We will work on all the little things—like their approach and how pointed their toes are—and perfect them while learning the basic dives, then hopefully leading into more complicated ones,” Coach Ismail said.

Growing up in the area, Coach Ismail visited the Kingston pool, where he discovered his love for diving. It was there that a lifeguard — who was also a diver, made an impact on Ibrahim Ismail in his youth. His former coach, Rob Jacobs, who worked there, saw Ibrahim Ismail’s potential and encouraged him to join the Wyoming Valley West High School diving team. Reflecting back, he credits his improvement and desire to coach to his former coach, Rob Jacobs. 

“My coach Rob Jacobs was, in my opinion and many others’, the best coach in the area. With his guidance, I excelled very quickly,” Coach Ismail said. “By my sophomore year, I had gotten so good that I placed third at our district meet, compared to my freshman year, where I think I placed 12th.”

Coach Ismail hopes to have the same impact on his divers that his former coach had on him.  His level of success will surely be passed onto this next generation of divers as they spring into action.