Derek Starks is in his fourth season as diving coach at the University of California, having joined the program in August 2016, and works with both the men’s and women’s teams.
In his first year coaching the Golden Bears, Starks helped Phoebe LaMay set school records on both the 1-meter and 3-meter boards as she qualified for the 2017 NCAA Championships in both events. LaMay earned All-America honors on 1-meter in 2019,
Starks brings extensive experience to Cal with more than 10 years in the coaching profession, including three at UNLV, along with an All-American career at the University of Miami. In addition to his stint at UNLV, he served as National and International Team Director with Mission Viejo Nadadores Diving for six years and spent more than two years on the USA Diving Board of Directors. He was also head coach of the High Stakes Diving Club in Las Vegas from 2014-16.
While at UNLV, Starks helped build Rebel diving into a competitive program, with the men’s team breaking every school record. In 2015-16, senior Lucas James became the first diver in UNLV history to win a Western Athletic Conference championship on the platform, setting a league record during his performance. James was the first Rebel to win any conference diving event since 1987. Outside of the pool, both the men’s and women’s swimming & diving programs at UNLV were chosen CSCAA Scholar All-America teams for spring 2016 semester.
As coach at Mission Viejo, Starks helped the team win a total of 14 medals at age-group national championships and 26 junior national championship medals. He was a diving coach at the 2011 Junior Pan American Games. As a diver at Mission Viejo, Starks was a junior world bronze medalist and multiple-time national champion.
Starks earned his bachelor’s degree in business administration (entrepreneurship) from Miami in 2007. He was the 2006 ACC Diver of the Year and received All-American honors on platform in 2004 and ’05 and on the 1-meter board in 2006. As a freshman, he was named the Big East Most Outstanding Diver. Starks competed at the U.S. Olympic Trials, the World Cup Team Trials and USA Diving Nationals.
