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In synch Russians sweep synchronized divingPosted: Friday September 22, 2000 11:27 PMUpdated: Thursday November 09, 2000 12:56 PM
SYDNEY, Australia (CNNSI.com) - The Russians swept the first two events of the day, also taking the women's 3-meter springboard gold. Both times, they defeated the powerful Chinese. Mark Ruiz paired with David Pichler for a disappointing seventh-place showing on the men's 10-meter platform as synchronized diving made its Olympic debut Saturday. "We know we could have medaled," said Ruiz, the 21-year-old rising star of American diving from Orlando, Fla. "I felt so good. I thought, 'I've got to keep my adrenaline down.'" Not so for Pichler, who splashed raggedly on the last two dives and apologized to his partner for ruining their medal chances. "He's a little tired," Ruiz said. "His adrenaline wasn't there." Dmitry Sautin added to the individual gold medal he won in Atlanta, teaming with Igor Lukachin on platform to score 365.04 points. They edged the Chinese team of Hu Jia and Tian Liang, who took silver with 358.74. Jan Hempel and Heiko Meyer of Germany captured bronze at 338.88. Ruiz, whose mother brought him from Puerto Rico to the United States so he could pursue diving, was clearly the strongest member of the American team. Pichler, a sixth-place finisher on platform at the 1996 Games, botched the entry on his last two dives, creating a huge splash in the water and resulting in scores ranging from 4.0 to 6.5. "Our synchro was right on," Pichler said. "Unfortunately, my dives weren't particularly spectacular. I focused a little too much on synchro. I left the last two dives a little short. It made a big difference."
The Americans finished at 321.69, beating only the French in the eight-team field and winding up a whopping 43.35 behind the winning Russians. Pichler apologized afterward to his partner. "He has nothing to be sorry about," Ruiz said. "He's been a great partner. We both gave it our best. He was a little bit out of energy." Ruiz will get a chance to shine on his own when he takes part in both individual events. Pichler, 32, of Butler, Pa., is in the individual platform and synchronized springboard. "Right now, I'm very disappointed," Ruiz said. "It's just going to push me even harder." Vera Ilina, in her third Olympics, teamed with Yulia Pakhalina to give Russia the gold in springboard. China's Fu Mingxia was denied a record-tying fourth gold medal, taking silver with Guo Jingjing. The bronze went to Ganna Sorokina and Olena Zhupina of Ukraine. American Greg Louganis is the only diver to win four Olympic titles. Fu will have another chance to equal his mark in the 3-meter individual competition. "We tried very hard to catch up but we couldn't do it," Fu said. "In terms of practical skill, I think they are better." The United States didn't even qualify for the women's competition. Sautin, 26, broke the Chinese stranglehold on diving with his 10-meter victory in 1996. The Chinese won the other three events. Sautin and Lukachin briefly dropped to second behind their rivals after Round 3, but clinched the gold with their two toughest dives. The Russian women led from start to finish in the 3-meter, totaling 332.64 points on their five dives. China finished at 321.60. "They're awesome," Ilina said. "They were great today, but we were better." The Ukrainians were a distant third at 290.34. The 26-year-old Ilina, who won NCAA championships for Texas in 1997 and '98, had never finished higher than sixth in individual Olympic competition. The synchronized event, in which divers leap at the same time from adjacent boards and are judged on execution and synchronization, gave her a chance to finally climb the medal stand. "I can't believe it yet," said Ilina, who flashed a "Hook 'em, Horns" sign. "I have been going for it since I was 7. I'm just so happy." Pakhalina, 23, was appearing in her first Olympics. "It's a special event for us because it's new," Ilina said. "We only looked at our own jumps, not our competitors." Fu was only 14 when she won her first gold on the 10-meter platform at the 1992 Games. She followed in Atlanta with a sweep of both women's events, but won't get a chance to become a three-time platform champion. Now 23, she was beaten out in China's national trials by two younger divers. Those two -- 15-year-old Sang Xue and 16-year-old Li Na -- were 1-2 after the preliminaries of individual 3-meter on Friday. Sang had 374.79 points on five dives, while Li held second at 366.60. Laura Wilkinson of The Woodlands, Texas, appeared to be a medal contender. She had 331.20 points in her first Olympics, placing fifth in the prelims and setting her sights on the Chinese. "I think they can be caught," said the 22-year-old Wilkinson, diving with a foot that was broken in March. The top 18 advanced to the semifinals on Sunday (Saturday night EDT), to be followed by the evening final at Sydney International Aquatic Center. The other American, 21-year-old Sara Reiling of Roseville, Minn., slipped into the semis with a strong final dive that vaulted her from 23rd to 16th with 282.84 points. The Chinese women have won four straight golds in the platform.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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