BEIJING (AP)—Chen Ruolin stepped to the edge of the 10-meter platform and jumped into a somersaulting, twisting blur that barely created a splash upon entry.
The 15-year-old Chinese girl got out, bowed and cried upon realizing she had won her country’s record seventh Olympic diving gold medal, rallying on her last — and toughest—dive to beat Canada’s Emilie Heymans.
“When I entered the water, I had a feeling that I was going to win,” Chen said through a translator.
China’s seven golds topped the six they won four years ago in Athens.
Chen totaled 447.70 points Thursday night off the high board, making China 7-for-7 with only men’s platform remaining before the host country could clinch a golden sweep. China had not won the women’s event since 1996.
“That’s why I was a bit nervous,” she said.
ADVERTISEMENT No country has swept the diving medals since the United States did in 1952, but back then, there were only four events. Synchronized diving was added at the 2000 Sydney Olympics.
Heymans, who led by 7.15 points going into Chen’s last dive, earned the silver with 437.05.
Chen’s 16-year-old teammate, Wang Xin, never got higher than third in the final and took the bronze at 429.50.
“Chen Ruolin has a better entry than me and she performed just as we expected,” said Wang, the current platform world champion. “Emilie did better than her normal level. The distance between me and them is my control over my splash.”
American Laura Wilkinson, the 2000 Olympic champion, finished ninth in her final competition before retiring.
“It wasn’t the meet of my dreams, obviously, but it was my last dive in the Olympics, probably ever, so my team gave me a standing ovation,” she said. “I almost lost it on the platform. To go out on a good note at least made me feel really good.”
The U.S. is on the verge of a medals shutout for the second consecutive Olympics, with teenagers David Boudia and Thomas Finchum the only remaining hopes.
Chen earned four 10s and three 9.5s for her backward 21/2 somersault with 11/2 twists from the pike position—rated 3.4 degree of difficulty. Overall, Chen received seven 10s during the five-round final.
The mostly Chinese crowd inside the Water Cube roared when her scores lit up the board, realizing the home country had done it again.
“It didn’t affect my performance because when I’m on the platform, I’m focused on the event itself,” Chen said. “I cannot be affected by the audience.”
Chen cried and received numerous hugs on the deck. Canadian Alexandre Despatie, silver medalist on men’s 3-meter springboard, who congratulated the 4-foot-6, 66-pound sprite who began diving at age 4.
She said she doesn’t expect being Olympic champion will change her life.
“Even though I got the gold medal, I have some very hard training to do,” Chen said. “I have to forget about the gold medal. If not, I won’t have improvement in the future.”
Heymans was consistently good throughout the final, with none of her dives ranking worse than third. She took the lead on her fourth and toughest dive—a reverse 31/2 somersault—that earned 95.20 points. Chen, diving last, scored 89.10 points and found herself trailing for the first time all night.
Heymans waited anxiously for Chen’s scores to be posted. The 26-year-old Canadian shook her head before they flashed, as though she knew the Chinese had been too brilliant.
“I know they have really good divers and they’ve been doing really well,” she said. “They were able to do even better than I did.”
Four years ago in Athens, Heymans had the gold in her grasp, but she made a costly mistake on her final dive. About 1 meter above the water, she kicked out of her third somersault too late and landed on her back, finishing fourth.
This time, Heymans had no control over the result.
“Athens was a long time ago,” she said. “I was just trying to stay focused on what I have to do with that dive. I finished the competition real well.”
She earned her first individual Olympic medal, having finished fifth at the 2000 Sydney Games. Heymans has silver and bronze medals from synchronized platform in the previous two Olympics. She and her partner weren’t selected by Canadian officials to compete in synchro here.
“I think we could have medaled in that one, too,” she said. “I could have gone home with two medals instead of one.”
Wilkinson did the toughest dive of anyone in the final, a backward 31/2 somersault from the pike position with a 3.6 degree of difficulty. The gutsy move backfired when she under-rotated, her legs nearly bent as she entered the water. Wilkinson received 43.20 points, dropping her from sixth to 11th.
“I don’t know if I overtried,” she said. “I’m not sure what it was. It was a little tough to regroup after that.”
As is her trademark, the 30-year-old Texan rebounded on the last competitive dive of her career, earning 86.70 points—her highest score of the night—for a backward 21/2 somersault with 11/2 twists that moved her up to ninth.
Wilkinson, the oldest diver in the final, has been bothered by a chronically sore triceps that flares up on her entries.
The 15-year-old Chinese girl got out, bowed and cried upon realizing she had won her country’s record seventh Olympic diving gold medal, rallying on her last — and toughest—dive to beat Canada’s Emilie Heymans.
“When I entered the water, I had a feeling that I was going to win,” Chen said through a translator.
China’s seven golds topped the six they won four years ago in Athens.
Chen totaled 447.70 points Thursday night off the high board, making China 7-for-7 with only men’s platform remaining before the host country could clinch a golden sweep. China had not won the women’s event since 1996.
“That’s why I was a bit nervous,” she said.
ADVERTISEMENT No country has swept the diving medals since the United States did in 1952, but back then, there were only four events. Synchronized diving was added at the 2000 Sydney Olympics.
Heymans, who led by 7.15 points going into Chen’s last dive, earned the silver with 437.05.
Chen’s 16-year-old teammate, Wang Xin, never got higher than third in the final and took the bronze at 429.50.
“Chen Ruolin has a better entry than me and she performed just as we expected,” said Wang, the current platform world champion. “Emilie did better than her normal level. The distance between me and them is my control over my splash.”
American Laura Wilkinson, the 2000 Olympic champion, finished ninth in her final competition before retiring.
“It wasn’t the meet of my dreams, obviously, but it was my last dive in the Olympics, probably ever, so my team gave me a standing ovation,” she said. “I almost lost it on the platform. To go out on a good note at least made me feel really good.”
The U.S. is on the verge of a medals shutout for the second consecutive Olympics, with teenagers David Boudia and Thomas Finchum the only remaining hopes.
Chen earned four 10s and three 9.5s for her backward 21/2 somersault with 11/2 twists from the pike position—rated 3.4 degree of difficulty. Overall, Chen received seven 10s during the five-round final.
The mostly Chinese crowd inside the Water Cube roared when her scores lit up the board, realizing the home country had done it again.
“It didn’t affect my performance because when I’m on the platform, I’m focused on the event itself,” Chen said. “I cannot be affected by the audience.”
Chen cried and received numerous hugs on the deck. Canadian Alexandre Despatie, silver medalist on men’s 3-meter springboard, who congratulated the 4-foot-6, 66-pound sprite who began diving at age 4.
She said she doesn’t expect being Olympic champion will change her life.
“Even though I got the gold medal, I have some very hard training to do,” Chen said. “I have to forget about the gold medal. If not, I won’t have improvement in the future.”
Heymans was consistently good throughout the final, with none of her dives ranking worse than third. She took the lead on her fourth and toughest dive—a reverse 31/2 somersault—that earned 95.20 points. Chen, diving last, scored 89.10 points and found herself trailing for the first time all night.
Heymans waited anxiously for Chen’s scores to be posted. The 26-year-old Canadian shook her head before they flashed, as though she knew the Chinese had been too brilliant.
“I know they have really good divers and they’ve been doing really well,” she said. “They were able to do even better than I did.”
Four years ago in Athens, Heymans had the gold in her grasp, but she made a costly mistake on her final dive. About 1 meter above the water, she kicked out of her third somersault too late and landed on her back, finishing fourth.
This time, Heymans had no control over the result.
“Athens was a long time ago,” she said. “I was just trying to stay focused on what I have to do with that dive. I finished the competition real well.”
She earned her first individual Olympic medal, having finished fifth at the 2000 Sydney Games. Heymans has silver and bronze medals from synchronized platform in the previous two Olympics. She and her partner weren’t selected by Canadian officials to compete in synchro here.
“I think we could have medaled in that one, too,” she said. “I could have gone home with two medals instead of one.”
Wilkinson did the toughest dive of anyone in the final, a backward 31/2 somersault from the pike position with a 3.6 degree of difficulty. The gutsy move backfired when she under-rotated, her legs nearly bent as she entered the water. Wilkinson received 43.20 points, dropping her from sixth to 11th.
“I don’t know if I overtried,” she said. “I’m not sure what it was. It was a little tough to regroup after that.”
As is her trademark, the 30-year-old Texan rebounded on the last competitive dive of her career, earning 86.70 points—her highest score of the night—for a backward 21/2 somersault with 11/2 twists that moved her up to ninth.
Wilkinson, the oldest diver in the final, has been bothered by a chronically sore triceps that flares up on her entries.
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