March 25, 2007

Foster sixth, Bryant 10th in women's 3-meter finals

MELBOURNE, Australia – Two USA divers placed in the top 10 of the women’s 3-meter finals at the World Championships on Sunday afternoon.

Nancilea (Underwood) Foster placed sixth with 312.70 points, and Kelci Bryant was 10th at 294.55.

China’s Guo Jingjing won the gold, scoring 381.75 points. Her teammate Wu Minxia claimed the silver at 368.80, and Italy’s Tania Cagnotto won the bronze at 341.70.

“I was pleased. I felt I dove fairly consistently, and my goal was to be in the top six,” said Foster, who was ninth on the event at the 2005 World Championships. “I could have done a few of my dives a little better. I have a lot of hard work ahead of me as I start looking forward to Beijing.”

Foster’s sixth-place finish came after a dramatic comeback in the semifinals. Only the top 12 divers in the semis advance to the finals, and Foster ranked between 14th and 17th through the first four rounds of the semis. But she ended the competition with the highest score in the fifth round, earning 76.50 points on her reverse 2 ½ pike to jump five spots in the standings and earn a spot in the finals. She ended the semis with 296.75 points.

Bryant was ranked among the top nine for the entire duration of the semis and finished sixth with 312.20.

“My best performance was in the semifinals. I’m a little disappointed, but I’m only 18 and it’s my first World Championships on 3-meter. I’ll learn a lot from this,” said Bryant of her 10th-place finish.

By virtue of their top 12 finishes, Bryant and Foster also have earned the United States two spots in the women’s 3-meter events in the 2008 Olympic Games. The top 12 finishers on each individual event earn spots for their countries (not the divers themselves) for the Games on that event.

The FINA World Championships wrap up Monday with two synchronized diving events. Bryant will pair up with Ariel Rittenhouse for the women’s 3-meter synchro event, and David Boudia and Thomas Finchum in men’s 10-meter synchro.

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