FINAL DAY BRINGS OUT TOP CLASS DIVES
The final day of the 2007 GB Diving Championships saw excellent
performances coming from all competitors.
The Men's platform event dominated the day and with Leon
Taylor pulling out, all eyes were on Peter Waterfield (25).
Going into the final Waterfield, of Southampton Diving Club,
had a comfortable lead. He secured the British title with
a series of excellent dives giving him a score of 497.50.
Waterfield, who won silver in the platform event at the 2006
Commonwealth Games, is pleased with his performances.
"I had some really good dives this afternoon,"
he said. "I performed better in the final the prelims,
I received some really good scores and I am pleased to come
away British Champion. I am looking forward to going into
Worlds to do well and to qualify for the Olympics in 2008."
"Thomas Daley was performing well today, his dives were
impressive and he was pushing me hard. It's good to see the
younger divers training hard and diving well."
In the event Thomas Daley (12), of Plymouth Diving Club,
took second place with a score of 450.50 proving his place
on the World class development squad.
"The whole weekend has just been amazing for me,"
he said. "It has been such an honour to dive against
the likes of Peter, he is an Olympic Medallist and I have
learnt a lot from the competition."
"I have won silver in the British Championships, for
me that is incredible. I am so happy. I am hoping to be going
to the Youth Olympic Games within the next month, I am hoping
to do well there and come back with some success."
In third place was Gareth Jones, from Southampton Diving
club, with a point score of 439.30.
The Women's 3m springboard event saw Hayley Sage come from
behind to take the British Championship title, she finished
the preliminaries in fourth place. In the final she executed
some impressive dives to give her the lead ahead of her synchronisation
partner Tandi Gerrard.
The final saw Sage score 290.00 points and Tandi Gerrard
missed one of her dives to lose vital points, she finished
with a score of 286.45. In bronze medal position was Rebecca
Gallantree with a score of 274.65.
Sage was pleased to have competed well after her difficult
preliminaries.
"I am very happy to be British Champion," she said.
"I knew that Tandi dived well in the prelims and I was
not doing so well, but I really upped it in the final and
pulled out some really good dives."
The silver medallist Gerrard felt she had more to give in
the final.
"I am little disappointed to have the silver medal,"
she said. "I did want to win, but I had a terrible inward
in the final meaning I lost points. It has been a good weekend
for both of us though and I am happy with how I dived overall."
British Diving's National Performance Director Steve Foley,
was present throughout the weekend and was impressed with
the success of the weekend.
"This weekend we have seen some top level dives,"
he said. "There have been excellent performances by all
of the divers, but the most important thing for me is that
the divers have been performing well twice. This is what the
divers need to do at major international tournaments, and
they really pulled out all the stops this weekend."
"This has given me a lot of confidence for the team
that we will take to the World Championships. I am hoping
that we will come away with a few divers qualified for the
2008 Olympics."
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