Jessica Macaulay is first and Molly Carlson is ninth following the first two rounds of competition at the Red Bull Cliff Diving World Series stop in Downpatrick Head, Ireland.
Macaulay finished Saturday’s two rounds with a cumulative score of 160.20 and sits ahead of Australians Xantheia Pennisi (159.00) and Rhiannan Iffland (158.1).
For Macaulay, the native of Great Yarmouth in the United Kingdom who holds dual citizenship and began diving for Canada earlier this season, Saturday at Downpatrick Head was her best start on the Red Bull Cliff Diving World Series tour.
“I’m really satisfied. Today is the best first day of my entire high diving career, so I couldn’t be happier,” Macaulay said of her 15th career event on the Cliff Diving World Series tour. “Something I was saying mentally was, ‘Whatever happens, happens.’ I was really trying to be present in the moment, and I was letting all expectations go, so that was really helpful for me.”
The 28-year-old was fourth following her first dive score of 65.00 and moved into first after scoring 95.20 on her second dive.
Macaulay, who is recovering from a shoulder injury suffered during training in Austria, admitted the conditions at Downpatrick Head were a big factor in Saturday’s competition.
“I went into my first training day on Friday really nervous, and then after my first couple of dives, the shoulder felt good, so I was confident today. I wasn’t worried about the shoulder,” she said. “The conditions were definitely a factor today with the waves. I was also a bit nervous about the waves because I had been injured previously because of waves. I did my best to try and time my dives with the waves, and it worked out.”
Carlson admitted the rough conditions in Ireland affected her performance on Saturday.
“I felt like my dives were really strong. I had great takeoffs. Just when they hit the water, I went as I normally do, but with the waves, you kind of have to have an extra amount of tightness that I just lacked a little bit,” she said. “I’m hoping that on Sunday, I can find those entries and mix them with my takeoffs.”
The 22-year-old Thunder Bay native was seventh following her first dive score of 52.00 but dropped to ninth after scoring 49.30 on her second dive.
“Training has been going really well, and it’s the same thing: flat water in Austria,” Carlson said. “You can never really train for what wave is going to hit you at the time that you jump, so it’s kind of something that I am excited to move forward with and be ready for the next time that I show up to a competition with waves.”
Full results: https://www.redbull.com/ca-en/event-series/redbull-cliffdiving/results
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.
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For more information:
Jeff Feeney
Director, Events and Communications
Diving Plongeon Canada
C: 613-668-9668 | jeff@diving.ca