DIVING WORLD SERIES 2011 - Guanajuato, Day 2: Three more wins for China to conclude the 2011 series

Claudia Ruiz, FINA Press Correspondent in Mexico

China ended with a "concert of perfection" the fourth stage of the FINA/Midea Diving World Series, namely thanks to Qiu Bo, the “king” of the men's 10m platform, event that he won in the four legs of the series in Moscow, Beijing, Sheffield and Guanajuato.

In Mexico, the last event of the 2011 competition held on April 22-23, Qiu Bo received two perfect 10 from the judges and finished his six-dive effort with a total of 582.45 points and another gold medal in his pocket. World champion Thomas Daley (GBR) was also in great shape and obtained the silver medal with 562.80 points, while Rommel Pacheco (MEX), certainly inspired by the Mexican audience, got the bronze with 540.90 points.
The second triumph for China happened in the women’s 3m springboard, where He Zi got her third crown of the series with 385.05 points. Jennifer Abel (CAN), who was the revelation among the women in this event, was second with 353.55 points and Kassidy Cook (USA) finished third with 336.60. He Zi had also won in Sheffield and Moscow, while Wu Minxia was the best in Beijing.

Chen Ruolin and Hao Wang (CHN) also managed a perfect Grand Slam in the women’s 10m platform synchro, winning in Guanajuato their fourth title of the series with a total of 353.70. They were accompanied in the podium by Meaghan Benfeito and Roseline Filion (CAN), silver medallists with 327.45 and Alexandra Croak/Melissa Wu (AUS), third with 323.22.

A very emotional moment for Mexico was the gold medal from Yahel Castillo and Daniel Islas in the men’s 3m springboard synchro. In front of their fans, they were the most consistent team throughout the event, finishing first with 437.07 points. Troy Dumais and Kristian Ipsen (USA) were second with 431.28 and Illya Kvasha/Prygorov Oleksiy third with 410.58. Luo Yutong and Qin Kai (CHN) did not participate in Guanajuato but were the winners in Moscow, Beijing and Sheffield.

In Guanajuato, China won six titles and Mexico got gold and two bronze medals, which constituted one of the surprises of the fourth and final leg of the FINA/Midea Diving World Series 2011.

The stands of the Macro Centre in Guanajuato were filled with many enthusiastic fans during the two-day event (overall, more than 2500 persons), who certainly appreciated the performances of the 69 participating divers from 13 countries.