Montréal, October 12, 2024 – Mother Nature stole the show this weekend at the World Junior High Diving Championships in Brasilia, Brazil. Friday’s strong winds and inclement weather forced competitions to come to a halt, as the diving structure was seriously damaged.
“In sport, there are always things you can’t control. The winds were extremely strong yesterday and I think there were doubts about the structure this morning. I agree with the decision, it’s an extreme sport with a structure that goes up to 27m high – it was really a question of safety and I think World Aquatics made the right decision by thinking of athlete safety first and foremost,” explained Diving Canada’s High Dive Program Director Olivier Morneau-Ricard.
Despite adverse weather conditions and uncertainty, three Canadian divers stood out from the crowd and dove their way to the podium.
Kelly-Ann Tessier and Fiona Keilly finished second and third, respectively, in the Junior Women 15-16 Age Group. Tessier in particularly stood out on her fourth and final dive, when she scored 67.20, which brought her to 259.10 points total – and the second step of the podium.
Keilly completed the competition with a final score of 208.45. Australia’s Lacey Hema (259.10 points) was the only athlete who managed to finish ahead of the pair of Canadians.
“These are great results for Kelly-Ann and Fiona. This weekend has been an incredible experience for them, and it’s also an opportunity for them to measure themselves against the best international athletes in their age group. It’s the sort of experience that will surely help them in terms of training for the rest of their careers,” added Morneau-Ricard.
In the Men’s 17-18 age category, Alex Tiaglei also made it onto the podium.
While Tessier and Keilly were able to complete all four of their dives, Tiaglei ended up with only two dives under his proverbial belt, due to the unexpected halt in competition. However, even after only two efforts, his 148.75 points were enough to put him in third place.
Following the cancellation of the final two rounds of diving, officials announced that the ranking after two dives would determine the athletes’ final order for the day.
China’s Hao Li (151.40 points) took home the gold medal, just ahead of Brazil’s Rafael Borges (150.00 points).
Charles-Antoine Labadie took ninth place overall with 115.25 points after two dives.
Diving in the Women’s 17-18 Age Group, Zita Bernatsky finished seventh (102.90 points); her age group was also forced to call it quits after only two dives.
The wild weather wasn’t quite finished with its hijinks though: the Senior High Diving World Cup, scheduled to start on Saturday in Brasilia, was also cancelled. Molly Carlson, Simone Leathead, François Imbeau-Dulac and Michael Foisy were supposed to take part in this World Cup round, diving for Team Canada. Britain’s Aidan Heslop and Mexico’s Antonio Corzo Diaz, who both train in Montréal, were also scheduled to take part.
More information:
Alexandra Piché
Manager, Communications
Diving Canada
C: 514 625-5513
alexandra@diving.ca