The divers were in action at the World Aquatics Championships which officially began on Saturday in Fukuoka, Japan, with three finals scheduled. Pamela Ware posted the best Canadian result of the day finishing just off the podium on the one meter springboard with a total of 284.40 points.
A performance beyond expectations for the one who had not taken part in this event at the international level for almost 10 years.
“At first I wasn’t supposed to take part, but I’m very glad I did. I hadn’t done the 1m internationally since 2014 and honestly didn’t have high expectations. I just wanted to have fun, dive well and that’s what I did. I’m really proud of myself! commented Ware, who is only 0.65 points from a bronze medal at the opening of the Worlds.
After long minutes of waiting by the side of the pool, the two-time Olympian saw her good friend Aranza Vazquez Montano of Mexico pull off a fifth and final good dive to take her total to 285.05 points.
“I was super proud of myself and super proud of her, especially since it’s her first international medal! launched Ware.
The goal was to have a good day today [samedi] and dive with a smile. Now I want to keep the same approach for the rest of the competition.
Pamela Ware
Lin Shan (318.60) and Li Yajle (306.35) scored twice for China in this final.
The only other athlete from Quebec registered for an event on Saturday, Nathan Zsombor-Murray joined forces with Ottawa’s Kate Miler in the 10m synchro. The Canadian duo (290.43) finally took fifth place in a tough session, won by the Chinese divers (339.54).
“We wanted to break the pressure at the start of the competition and we saw it as a practice. It’s a learning experience for both of us and it’s very good for Kate, who had her first experience at the Senior Worlds,” analyzed the athlete from Pointe-Claire, who has big plans for the future.
“I know that a podium was possible because we have what it takes to get there, but I remain satisfied and we are looking to the next events! »
A personal high for Audrey Lamothe
Audrey Lamothe didn’t take long to make her mark in Fukuoka. Qualified for the technical solo final, the Quebecer obtained the best result of her career at the Senior Worlds by finishing sixth in the event.
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Audrey Lamothe
The 18-year-old artistic swimmer once again demonstrated that she belongs to the world elite of her discipline by obtaining a score of 216.4351 for her performance during the final session which crowned the Japanese Yukiko Inui.
The latter retained her title of world champion thanks to her 276.5717 points, ahead in order of the Austrian Vasiliki Alexandri (264.4200) and the Spaniard Iris Tio Casas (254.2100).
Lamothe took the opportunity to improve on her mark of 214.9417, which had also earned her sixth place in the preliminaries earlier this week, in addition to raising the bar for her upcoming outings. The four-time World Cup medalist this season placed tenth in this event in Budapest, Hungary, at the 2022 World Championships.
The Montrealer will have another chance to shine on Monday, during the preliminary round of the free solo. A place among top 12 would allow him to reach the final which will take place on Wednesday.
For their part, Laurianne Imbeau, Raphaëlle Plante, Kiara Quieti and Florence Tremblay were part of the Canadian squad which presented a first acrobatic routine a little earlier on Saturday. The representatives of the maple leaf (203.6600) finished sixth in the preliminaries and can fight for a podium on Monday.
For her part, adopted Quebecer Scarlett Finn teamed up with Kenzie Priddell in a technical duo on Friday. Their score of 192.0200 was not enough to finish among the top 12 pairs invited to the final scheduled for Sunday. They point in 18e place in the event standings.
The Fukuoka World Championships resume on Sunday, with Caeli McKay (10m synchro), Eric Brown (10km open water) and the Canadian women’s water polo team competing against Hungary to start their tournament.