
PARIS — China’s Wang Zongyuan and Lengthy Daoyi defended their nation’s males’s synchronized three-meter springboard title on the Paris Olympics on Friday, claiming the nation’s fourth gold medal within the sport and persevering with its bid to compete within the 2024 diving competitors. The objective was to win titles in all eight diving occasions.
Mexico’s Juan Zelaya and Osmar Olvera gained silver medals, whereas Britain’s Anthony Harding and Jake Lauer gained bronze.
The Chinese language pair recovered from two questionable dives to solidify their lead with a near-perfect efficiency within the ultimate transfer. Their ultimate bounce resulted in a most rating of 95.76 factors and a ultimate rating of 446.10 factors.
“We now have by no means skilled such an intense, thrilling and troublesome recreation. That is the primary time we’ve confronted such a problem.” Wang advised reporters.
“We made some errors, however I advised him (Lengthy) to search out himself and carry out at a standard stage and advised him there was nothing to be afraid of.”
Mexico, together with Staff GB, carried out essentially the most troublesome dive of Friday’s competitors – a 2-1/2 somersault ahead in a pike place and three twists.
Zelaya and Olvera carried out effectively in diving and took the lead within the fourth spherical, however did not defeat the Chinese language mixture and misplaced by solely 2.07 factors. The silver medal is Mexico’s first Olympic medal in males’s synchronized diving since London 2012.
“We now have a dream, a objective,” Olvera mentioned. “We virtually achieved that objective. We have been very near the Chinese language workforce. In fact, they aren’t unbeatable, so we’re very, very pleased with our outcomes.”
Three years in the past, 22-year-old Wang Jianlin and his associate Xie Siyi gained the gold medal within the 3-meter synchronized occasion in Tokyo. Since 2022, he has additionally dominated the person 3-meter springboard competitors.
Lang, who’s one yr youthful than him, has gained the world championship in determine occasions since cooperating with Wang in early 2023, however in his Olympic debut, two dives led to his failure to compete.
“The primary two dives, I used to be just a little scared, just a little nervous, so I made errors,” Lengthy mentioned. “I used to be just a little nervous the final two dives too.”
Wang Junkai and Mexico’s Olvera will as soon as once more compete within the males’s 3-meter particular person occasion.
In February this yr, Olvera gained the gold medal in Doha, changing into the primary diver from a rustic aside from China to win the world championship within the 1 million springboard occasion up to now 20 years.
He’ll search to deprive Wang Jianlin of his title after ending second to Chinese language divers in 4 world championships this yr.
Britain’s Raul gained gold within the 3-meter springboard occasion at Rio 2016, whereas Harding made her Olympic debut on Friday.
——Reuters, on-site media particular report