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Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games - Preview

Published Fri 23 Jul 2021

The Australian Diving team heads into the Toyo 2020 Olympic Games looking to build upon the sustained success of Aussie divers in the Green and Gold who have secured medals at every Games since Sydney 2000.

The seven-member diving squad includes four Olympic debutants, two Olympic medallists, and is led by a coaching staff with an unprecedented sixteen Olympic Games appearances between them.

The Tokyo Games will mark a return to international competition for the squad who have remained on Australian soil since early 2020.

Athletes

Melissa Wu – Women’s 10-Metre Platform

Nikita Hains – Women’s 10-Metre Platform

Anabelle Smith – Women’s 3-Metre Springboard

Esther Qin – Women’s 3-Metre Springboard

Cassiel Rousseau – Men’s 10-Metre Platform

Sam Fricker – Men’s 10-Metre Platform

Shixin Li – Men’s 3-Metre Springboard

Ones to Watch

Headlining the Australian Diving team, Melissa Wu will dive into her fourth Olympic Games. Wu joins the small prestigious club of athletes to represent Australia in diving at four Games including Jenny Donnet and Loudy Wiggins neé Tourky. Since jumping into international competition as a 13-year-old at the 2006 Commonwealth Games, Wu has maintained her position as one of the world’s premier Platform divers.

Returning to the Olympic Games with Wu will be Anabelle Smith and Esther Qin, marking their third and second Games respectively. Smith’s bronze medal performance alongside synchronised partner Maddison Keeney at the Rio 2016 Games maintained Australia’s diving Olympic medal streak. This time around, Smith will be competing in her first Games as an individual.

Sam Fricker, Nikita Hains, Cassiel Rousseau, and Shixin Li will each make their Olympic debut in Tokyo.

Sport Format

Diving athletes at the Games will progress through preliminary and semi-final rounds before competing for their position on the Olympic podium in a 12-diver final. The Olympic Champion is the athlete with the highest score from only the final round of competition.

Australian divers will compete in four Olympic events in Tokyo, the Men’s 3-Metre Springboard, Women’s 3-Metre Springboard, Men’s 10-Metre Platform, and Women’s 10-Metre Platform.

Men compete six dives in both events, with women competing five dives.

Eye on the Competition

Australia will face fierce competition in diving from a slate of established athletes from across the globe.

Following a dominant showing in Rio in which they secured seven of a possible eight Olympic Gold Medals, the Chinese Diving team will once again field a strong contingent on the boards including reigning Olympic Champions Cao Yuan and Shi Tingmao.

Likewise, the Commonwealth countries of Great Britain, Canada, and Malaysia will look to return to the podium following their 2016 success.

Scoring a Dive

Dives are judged by a panel of seven judges who each give a score between 0 and 10 points for each dive performed.

The highest two and lowest two scores are removed with the remining three scores combined and multiplied by the specified degree of difficulty.

The total score from all six dives for men, and five dives for women, are tallied to determine the overall winner.

Quick Facts

Australian divers have medalled in every Olympic Games since Sydney 2000 including Gold Medal performances from Matthew Mitcham in 2008 and Chantelle Newbery in 2004.
Melissa Wu dives into her fourth Olympic Games for Australia joining Australian legends Jenny Donnet and Loudy Wiggins neé Tourky.
Diving first appeared at the St Louis 1904 Olympic Games.
Richmond ‘Dick’ Eve secured Australia’s first Olympic medal in diving placing first at the Paris 1924 Games.

Event Schedule

Friday, July 30