For the majority of the countries taking part in the Games, the expectation of a gold medal, from a talented and favourite athlete to win an event, is already a good expectation. For China, in many diving finals, the dilemma is different: will they get the gold AND silver medal, and if yes, which athlete will climb to the higher march of the podium, and which will just content with silver. This was therefore the main question at the start of the third individual diving final at the Tokyo Aquatics Centre, the women’s 10m platform. After the preliminaries, Chen Yuxi finished first in 390.70, while Quan Hongchen was slightly better in the semis, totaling 415.65 for her five dives.
Entering into the decisive stage of
the competition, there was no doubt that China would make the 1-2, but with
which athlete in which position? To have an idea of the Chinese favourite
status, the scores in the semis were amazingly clear: Quan had 415.65, Chen
amassed 407.75, while Delaney Schnell (USA) was third in… 342.75!
In the final, Quan was simply
exceptional, performing an absolutely flawless programme. On two of her rounds
– the second one (inward 3 ½ somersaults, tuck) and the fourth one (armstand
back 2 somersaults 1 ½ twists, free) – she got seven perfect 10s from all the judges!
The Chinese totalled an impressive score of 466.70, clearly in front of Chen,
second in “only” 425.40. The silver medallist was also quite solid in the
final, but Quan was untouchable today in Tokyo, performing a programme that
will for sure remain in the minds of all those who were privileged to witness
this final.
It is China’s sixth gold medal in the
diving competition (out of seven events contested so far), before the last
event of these Olympics, the final of the men’s 10m this Saturday in Tokyo.
Chen Yuxi (first presence in the Games) will be 16 on September 11 and had won
the 10m synchro title with Zhang Jiaqi on July 27. She is also the current
world champion in the individual 10m platform, after a brilliant performance at
the 2019 FINA showcase in Gwangju (KOR). Quan is still younger (14), and gets
this impressive medal at her first Olympic participation. Historically, the
Asian powerhouse is dominant in this event: since 1984, this is the eighth
title for China in 10 editions of the Olympics. The only non-Chinese victories
during this period went to Laura Wilkinson (USA, in Sydney 2000) and to
Chantelle Newbery (AUS, in Athens 2004). It is also the second 1-2 for China,
after Ren Qian (gold) and Si Yajie (silver) controlled operations five years
ago in Brazil.
For the bronze medal, Delaney Schnell
(third in both the prelims and semis) seemed in a better position to get US
first medal in this event precisely since the achievement of Wilkinson 21 years
ago in Australia. At 22, Schnell’s best result so far had been of course the
silver medal here in Tokyo in the synchronised 10m (with Jessica Parratto), but
also the third place in the individual final at the 2019 Worlds in Korea.
However, some difficulties in the second and third round, spoiled the hope of
being on the podium. In the end, the North American finished fifth, totalling
340.40.
In the meantime, regularity rewarded
Melissa Wu, bronze medallist in 371.40. The Australian did not make any
significant mistake during the five-dive final, with her best attempt being
precisely the final one – back 2 ½ somersaults 1 ½ twists -, when she got 81.60
from the judges. This is the second (first individual) Olympic medal for Wu,
after a silver in Beijing 2008 in the synchro 10m. At the FINA World Championshis,
she was three times on the podium, always in the synchronised event (silver in
Melbourne 2007 and Shanghai 2011, and bronze in Kazan 2015). The last
Australian Olympic medal in the individual 10m was a silver from Brittany
Broben in London 2012.
Other divers with medal aspirations
in this final, were not as successful as Wu. Among them, Pandelela Pamg (MAS),
finishing 12th and last of the final (245.85 – mainly after a disastrous first
round, where she severely over-rotated and got 18.00 points for a forward 3 ½
somersaults), after previous successes in London 2012 (bronze in individual
10m) and Rio 2016 (silver in synchro 10m). Gabriela Agundez Garcia (MEX), third
in the 10m synchro in Tokyo could also not provide a second medal to her
country, amassing a total of 358.50 and concluding in fourth.
Before the final, the road had been
difficult for Pamg, only 18th of the preliminaries, “thanks” to a challenging
third and fourth round. Practically out of contention, she was “saved” by a bad
fifth and last dive from Brazil’s Ingrid Oliveira, 14th since then, but then
thrown to the 24th position. Noemi Batki, the experienced Italian star, was
also unsecure in the preliminary phase, concluding in a disappointing 27th
place (her only “acceptable” dive being the last one).
Fifth coming into the semis, Meaghan
Benfeito, from Canada, was theoretically a contender for the medals in the
final, but several mistakes in the first and fifth round dictated her 13th spot
and non-qualification for the final. Her tears in the end of the semis
reflected the frustration of a diver with three bronze medals at Olympics
(including the third place in individual 10m in Rio 2016). The semis were also
complicated for the first Irish female diver ever qualified for the Olympics.
After finishing 16th of the prelims, Tanya Watson still improved one position,
giving good indications for the future.
QUOTES & FULL RESULTS https://www.fina.org/competitions/5/olympic-games-tokyo-2020/results?disciplines=DV&event=343c4b5e-9e03-41ce-9d60-38ee6d635505
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