Get 40% Off
🤯 This Tech Portfolio is up 29% YTD! Join Now to Get April’s Top PicksGet The Picks – Just 99 USD

Diving: Daley puts Rio failure behind him to regain world title

Published 07/22/2017, 04:01 PM
Updated 07/22/2017, 04:10 PM
© Reuters. 17th FINA World Aquatics Championships

© Reuters. 17th FINA World Aquatics Championships

By Rod Gilmour

BUDAPEST (Reuters) - - Tom Daley, Britain’s 2009 world champion, thwarted China’s bid to become the first country to win four successive diving world titles in the men's 10-metre platform when the 23-year-old prevailed in a thrilling final.

Olympic champion Chen Aisen was aiming to keep China’s golden exploits intact after Qiu Bo’s hat-trick of titles had matched American Greg Louganis' feat of more than 30 years ago.

However, Daley posted a personal-best points haul of 590.95, which included five 10s in a sizzling final dive, to secure his first individual global title for eight years when he won as a 15-year-old in Rome.

Daley, who failed to qualify for the Olympic final after a disastrous preliminary round last summer, told reporters: “I can put to bed Rio now and be like, 'Now I can move on on my journey to Tokyo'.

“I saw Chen hit the water and thought, 'Oh, yes. If that's how you want to play it, I'm here to play, too'.”

Chen admitted that he thought he would win gold with his final-round tally of 106.20 before Daley equaled the mark and held two arms aloft.

Chen, bidding to become the first reigning Olympic champion to win the world title since compatriot Hu Jia in 2005, said: “It means I will have to go back to work and do better next time.”

Daley had earlier partnered Grace Reid to a surprise silver in the mixed 3-metre synchro springboard final. Wang Han and Li Zheng of China won gold.

China’s three medals in the final day of diving - Yang Jian also won bronze in the men’s 10-metre platform - meant that the powerhouse nation across springboard and platform finished well clear in the medal table.

Having claimed 37 of 40 gold medals in World Series events this year, China continued to dominate in Budapest, with eight golds and 15 medals in all. Russia finished second with 10 medals.

Meanwhile, the soon-to-be-renamed synchronized swimming events concluded on Saturday night with another Russian monopoly of world titles.

Russia garnered seven of the nine on offer, Svetlana Kolesnichenko proving the stand-out star of the show with two golds apiece in both solo and duet routines.

© Reuters. 17th FINA World Aquatics Championships

Earlier on Saturday, the sport’s governing body, Fina, had voted to drop "synchronized" and change the name of the sport to artistic swimming.

Latest comments

Risk Disclosure: Trading in financial instruments and/or cryptocurrencies involves high risks including the risk of losing some, or all, of your investment amount, and may not be suitable for all investors. Prices of cryptocurrencies are extremely volatile and may be affected by external factors such as financial, regulatory or political events. Trading on margin increases the financial risks.
Before deciding to trade in financial instrument or cryptocurrencies you should be fully informed of the risks and costs associated with trading the financial markets, carefully consider your investment objectives, level of experience, and risk appetite, and seek professional advice where needed.
Fusion Media would like to remind you that the data contained in this website is not necessarily real-time nor accurate. The data and prices on the website are not necessarily provided by any market or exchange, but may be provided by market makers, and so prices may not be accurate and may differ from the actual price at any given market, meaning prices are indicative and not appropriate for trading purposes. Fusion Media and any provider of the data contained in this website will not accept liability for any loss or damage as a result of your trading, or your reliance on the information contained within this website.
It is prohibited to use, store, reproduce, display, modify, transmit or distribute the data contained in this website without the explicit prior written permission of Fusion Media and/or the data provider. All intellectual property rights are reserved by the providers and/or the exchange providing the data contained in this website.
Fusion Media may be compensated by the advertisers that appear on the website, based on your interaction with the advertisements or advertisers.
© 2007-2024 - Fusion Media Limited. All Rights Reserved.