FOLEY DELIGHTED AS DIVERS LOOK TO WORLDS
NATIONAL performance director Steve Foley has been "delighted"
with the level of progress of his divers, especially those
he has selected for next month's World Championship in Montreal,
Canada.
Foley was a happy man having seen his British divers turn
on the style at the Senior National Championship at the Quays
Leisure Centre, in Southampton, during the last three days.
Not only did divers 'raise the bar' in a bid to get selected
for their country, but competition was tough with plenty of
exciting domestic battles to admire, particularly in the women's
ten-metre platform competition, where Foley believes Britain
now have a chance of medalling at future Olympic Games. Roll
on Beijing 2008.
Today's competition was won by Plymouth's 16-year-old Tonia
Couch, who will now compete in Canada in both the synchro
and individual competitions.
Club-mate Brooke Graddon also qualified, keeping at bay the
experienced Stacie Powell and Monique McCarroll.
"I've been really impressed with the high standard I've
seen this year, all the divers seemed to have raised their
games," said Foley, who has selected a team of 10 divers
to compete in Montreal next month.
"It was also going to be tough to qualify for the World
Championship, but our younger divers have really pushed the
older divers - and with the Chinese here as well, there's
been pressure all the way."
Indeed, and with China's top divers in action, Britain's divers
rose to the challenge to contest the world's most successful
diving nation.
"There's been a bit of added spice with the Chinese coming
to compete - and I think that has made our divers perform
better," added Foley.
"You only have to look at the way Peter Waterfield performed
against the Olympic champion Tian Liang. He was fantastic."
Indeed, Waterfield pushed Liang all the way in front of his
home crowd in the ten-metre platform final, a remarkable performance
considering he has been injured for long spells this season.
Waterfield's example only helped to spur on the rest of the
British team. Tandi Indergaard, from the City of Leeds, finished
top of the medals table with three golds after disciplined
performances on Friday and Saturday.
The Yorkshire splash sensation is still looking to find a
regular partner for the three-metre springboard synchro competition,
with the retirement of Olympic partner Jane Smith.
Replacing Sheffield's Smith, who is venturing into a new teaching
career and who also gets married this summer, was never going
to be easy, but with Louise Van Hoof and Hayley Sage both
desperate to be Inderggard's partner, competition will be
fierce.
Sage, though, is likely to get the nod, while Van Hoof has
been handed the opportunity to shine in the three-metre springboard
individual competition following her silver medal on Saturday
afternoon.
As well as the usual runners and riders selected for the British
team, which includes Waterfield, Leon Talyor, Tony Ally, Mark
Shipman and Indergaard - all Olympians and regular GB international
performers - the four newcomers will be Sage, Couch, Graddon
and Sheffield's Ben Swain.
Swain turned on the style to win silver in the men's three-metre
springboard final behind Ally, but more importantly ahead
of Crystal Palace's Blake Aldridge, who narrowly missed out
on qualification.
"Tonia and Ben have dived magnificently today,"
added Foley.
"Tonia set a new British record with her score of 500.11,
and Ben was just excellent in the ten-metre platform, although
him and Blake both made the qualifying standard.
"I'm very excited about the future. We didn't qualify
for the ten-metre platform in Athens, but now we have four
girls who are all pushing each other hard for the two places
in the team.
"It's great to see Ben coming through as well. This competition
has been about stepping up to the plate and being counted.
"Ben and all the young divers deserve their chance, they've
worked very hard for this success." British World Championship
team: Tandi Indergaard (Leeds), Louise Van Hoof (Luton Kingfishers),
Peter Waterfield (Southampton), Leon Taylor, Mark Shipman,
Tony Ally, Ben Swain (Sheffield); Tonia Couch, Brooke Graddon
(Plymouth); Hayley Sage (Beaumont).
Results
ASA Senior National Diving Championship (Quays Leisure Centre,
Southampton) -
WOMEN, ten-metre platform synchro final: 1, T Couch
(Plymouth) & C Blencowe (Sheffield) 278.22 pts; 2, S Powell
(Bagiu) & M McCarroll (Southampton) 266.46; 3, R Gallantree
(Leeds) & S Collins (Leeds); 4, S Barrow (Plymouth) &
B Graddon (Plymouth); 5, E Alderman (Southampton) & E
Steel (Southampton) 181.38.
Three-metre springboard final: 1, T Indergaard
(Leeds) 506.40 pts; 2, L V Hoof (Luton) 476.64; 3, R Gallantree
(Leeds) 452.25; 4, E Teather (Leeds) 414.72; 5, C Wonnacott
(Plymouth) 405.66; 6, J McGroarty (Bagiu) 377.40; 7, H Sage
(Beaumont) 373.77; 8, F Ratcliff (Southend) 373.05.
One-metre springboard final: 1, T Indergaard
(Leeds) 244.26 pts; 2, R Gallantree (Leeds) 238.05; 3, K Hamilton
(Sheffield) 217.35; 4, L V Hoof (Luton) 216.90; 5, R Whiting
(Sheffield) 211.77; 6, C Tomkys (Southampton) 208.26; 7, H
Sage (Beaumont) 204.75; 8, E Teather (Leeds) 200.46.
Three-metre synchro springboard final: 1,
T Indergaard (Leeds) & H Sage (Beaumont) 245.79 pts; 2,
L V Hoof (Leeds) and J McGroarty (Bagiu) 245.61; 3, R Gallantree
(Leeds) & E Teather (Leeds) 239.46; 4, C Blencowe (Sheffield)
& K Hamilton (Sheffield) 228.81; 5, E Alderman (Southampton)
& E Steel (Southampton) 183.81.
MEN, three-metre springboard synchro final:
1, T Ally (Sheffield) & M Shipman (Sheffield) 311.19 pts;
2, B Swain (Sheffield) & B Aldridge (Crystal Palace) 311.19;
3, T Owens (Southampton) & G Hunt (Southampton) 271.20;
4, M Holdsworth (Leeds) & C Hallam (Sheffield) 266.04;
5, C Johnstone (Leeds) & C Calvert (Leeds) 244.80; 6,
K Prior (Plymouth) & T Daley (Plymouth) 244.71; 7, L Hazelton
(Luton) & J Clewlow (Southampton) 211.41; 8, D Mulford
(Southampton) & P O'Reilly (Southampton) 205.65; 9, M
Brick (Southampton) & C Mears (Southampton) 192.48. Guest
performances: Yan Hui (China) & Zhang Sen (China) 338.13.
Ten-metre platform synchro final: 1, P Waterfield
(Southampton) 550.68 pts; 2, G Jones (Plymouth) 399.36; 3,
G Hunt (Southampton) 348.12; 4, C Johnstone (Leeds) 346.65;
5, C Calvert (Leeds) 340.17; 6, T Daley (Plymouth) 325.77;
7, T Owens (Southampton) 309.84; 8, D Osborne (Southend) 282.99.
Guest performances: T Liang (China) 561.00; F Qin (China)
444.36.
One-metre springboard final: 1, B Swain (Sheffield)
319.32 pts; 2, B Aldridge (Crystal Palace) 275.97; 3, C Johnstone
(Leeds) 275.34; 4, G Hunt (Southampton) 273.93; 5, C Hallam
(Sheffield) 266.67; 6, T Owens (Southampton) 264.45; 7, G
Jones (Plymouth) 260.07; 8, T Daley (Plymouth) 245.46.
Ten-metre platform synchro final: 1, G Hunt
(Southampton) & G Jones (Plymouth) 286.59 pts; 2, S Hydes
(Sheffield) & C Mears (Southampton) 228.78; 3, D Mulford
(Southampton) & P O'Reilly (Southampton) 205.17; 4, A
Franklin (Beaumont) & M Roberts (Beaumont) 193.86.
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