Jennifer Abel and Mélissa Citrini-Beaulieu won silver in the women’s synchronized 3m springboard competition on Sunday in Tokyo.
In their first Olympics together, the pair finished with a combined score of 300.78 to secure a spot on the podium. Wang Han and Shi Tingmao of China won gold with 326.40 points while Germany’s Lena Hentschel and Tina Punzel finished third with 284.97 points.
“I’m very happy. Super satisfied. I couldn’t ask for a better day,” said Abel (Montreal, QC). “It hasn’t been easy. Also, for Melissa, its her first Olympic Games being by my side, its not easy for her too. We’ve been together as a team since 2017 and we’re here today, super satisfied.”
Abel won bronze at the 2012 Olympic Games in London and finished fourth in Rio.
“After Rio it was a tough time for me because I finished two times fourth, in one week,” Abel said. “After that, I felt like I lost myself because in my head I was so focusing on the medals and I didn’t get one so I felt like I didn’t achieve what I was aiming for.
“When I started my Olympic cycle, I knew that I wanted to stand on the board in Tokyo knowing that I did everything to be at my best. That’s the reason I chose Mélissa because I knew that we were going to be the best team together and she was going to be a good friend for me too.”
Citrini-Beaulieu (Saint-Constant, QC) made her Olympic debut on Sunday.
The pair recently won silver together at the Tatsumi Aquatics Centre back in May at the FINA Diving World Cup.
“I just feel like I know that I can do it, I just had to do what I had to do. I just tried to stay calm and focus on the moment,” said Citrini-Beaulieu.
Diving Plongeon Canada’s Chief Technical Officer, Mitch Geller, was confident in their ability heading into the competition.
“They had been taking that silver spot quite regularly and quite handily,” he said. “We were just hoping that any errors we made were going to be smaller than what our competitors made. That’s really the heart and soul of diving.”
Schedule, Results, Team Information, and Previous Olympic Statistics
- English : https://diving.ca/2020-olympic-games/
- Français : https://diving.ca/2020-olympic-games/
About Diving Plongeon Canada
Diving Plongeon Canada (DPC) was established in 1967 as a not-for-profit organization to promote the growth and awareness of the sport in this country. As a member of FINA, the world’s governing body of aquatic sports, DPC contributes to the development of globally accepted standards of excellence in diving and supports the rules and regulations of international competition. Representing nine provincial diving associations, 67 local diving clubs and close to 4,000 high-performance athletes, DPC shares a national commitment to advance the art and sport of diving and to position Canada as the number one diving nation in the world. For information, visit www.diving.ca.
For on-site interview requests:
Stéphane Côté, Diving Attaché
WhatsApp: 418-420-2125
C: 81-7040-761-207
E: stephane@artisticswimming.ca
For photos, families, or sport information requests:
Jeff Feeney, Diving Plongeon Canada
WhatsApp / Cell: 613-668-9668
E: jeff@diving.ca