Dubai: The world’s best divers began training in Dubai on Tuesday ahead of the second leg of the FINA/NVC Diving World Series 2014, which is being held at the Hamdan Sports Complex this Thursday, Friday and Saturday.
The first leg of the six event series was held in Beijing last weekend, and for many of the divers it was the first major competition of the year, and an opportunity to test out new combinations in the synchronised events.
The women’s 10m platform field was opened up with Olympic champion Chen Ruolin electing to concentrate on the synchro event in this series. Fellow countrywoman Liu Huixia took advantage of Roulin’s absence in the individual event, taking the first gold of the series in Beijing over Pandelela Rinong Pamg of Malaysia, with Tonia Couch of Great Britain winning the bronze.
Ruolin’s decision to concentrate on the synchro paid dividends, and she took gold with Liu Huixia ahead of the Canadian pair of Meaghan Benfeito and Roseline Filion.
Malaysian duo Pandelela Rinong Pamg and Mun Yee Leong took bronze.
“Beijing went well, we are looking forward to competing here again,” said Benfeito and Filion at Dubai International Airport on Monday.
In a surprise result in the men’s 10m platform, world champion Qiu Bo was bested by teammate Cao Yuan, who is better known for his synchro performances. Great Britain’s Tom Daley had a strong start, going into first place with his first dive, but had to settle for bronze.
Daley said on arrival in Dubai: “Beijing was good, I’m very excited and looking forward to the competition here. It’s good to be back in Dubai.”
The 3m springboard also yielded a surprise, with world champion He Zi beaten by teammate Wang Han, the first time Wang has prevailed in an international meet against He.
Canada’s Pamela Ware took bronze, while in the men’s 3m the reigning world champion He Chong did not disappoint, taking gold ahead of Lin Yue with Ukraine’s Illya Kvasha in third.
Breakthrough performance
In the men’s 3m synchro, the Russian team of Evgeny Kuznetsov and Ilya Zakharov broke the Chinese stranglehold with gold ahead of Cao Yuan and Lin Yue. Lin and Cao are better known as a 10m synchro team, and had to settle for silver in their 3m synchro debut. They redeemed themselves in the 10m synchro, though, taking gold ahead of world champions Patrick Hausding and Sascha Klein of Germany, with Great Britain’s Daniel Goodfellow and Matthew Lee in bronze.
The women’s 3m synchro result was more predictable, with world champions Wu Minxia and Shi Tingmao of China in first followed by Canada’s Jennifer Abel and Pamela Ware.
With such talent across the entire field, the competition for gold will be tough in every event this weekend in Dubai, with the Chinese under constant threat of a breakthrough performance from any one of the other competitors.
“We are very excited about welcoming the competitors and teams back to Dubai for the FINA/NVC Diving World Series 2014. We are delighted to see such a strong line-up, which is guaranteed to delight the crowds,” said Dr Ahmad Saad Al Sharif, General Secretary of the Dubai Sports Council.
“The quality of the competition is world class and we are hoping that sports fans in Dubai will come out in force to enjoy the spectacle,” said Ahmad Al Falasi, President of the UAE Swimming Federation and chairman of the Organising Committee.
The FINA/NVC Diving World Series event runs over three days, starting with the 10m platform synchro finals on Thursday from 10am to noon, followed by the opening ceremony at 5pm and 3m springboard synchro finals from 6-8pm. Friday’s 3m individual springboard semi-finals session runs from 10am to noon, with the finals from 5-7pm. The final day of competition on Saturday involves the 10m platform semi-finals from 10am to noon, followed by the finals from 5-7pm.
Final leg
Following the event in Dubai, the competition heads to London, Moscow, and Windsor, Canada before the final leg in Monterrey, Mexico in June.
Event organisers are also happy to announce the involvement of local children and aspiring diving stars in the event. During the opening ceremony on Thursday, local diving club DuDive will present a short display demonstrating their expertise.
On Friday, the UAE Swimming Federation will offer children the opportunity to compete in a series of fun 50m swimming races ‘Fast Fifties’ swum in a 25m format.
The event will be held from 3pm-4.30pm and is open to all beginner swimmers aged eight-12. The races will be in the following format: 50m freestyle, 50 backstroke and 4x50 freestyle relay. The programme will also run on Saturday in the following format: 50m breaststroke, 50 butterfly and 4x50 IM relay. Registration can be done on the day or in advance to uaeswimmingfederation@gmail.com.
Prior to both afternoon sessions on Friday and Saturday at 4.40pm, DuDive Members will again present a short programme highlighting their training routines and expertise for the audience.
Tickets to catch all the action at the FINA/NVC Diving World Series will be available at the gate at the Hamdan Sports Complex on Emirates Road. Tickets are Dh40 per day with children under 12 admitted free.
