Hedberg places 11th on 10-meter, Hayden/Schultz seventh in 3-meter synchro at FINA World Championships
by USA Diving
Josh Hedberg (Noblesville, Ind./Indiana International School of Diving) placed 11th in the men’s 10-meter final, and Kristen Hayden (Hillsborough, N.J./Johansen Diving Academy) and Brooke Schultz (Fayetteville, Ark./Columbia, S.C.) finished seventh in women’s synchronized 3-meter as the FINA World Championships wrapped up Sunday in Budapest, Hungary.
The 15-year-old Hedberg scored 375.10 points for 11th in his first World Championships final. He scored between 68.40 and 75.60 points on four dives, including 72 points on his front 3 ½ pike in the first round. After missing his third- and fourth-round dives, he rebounded with 68.80 points on an inward 3 ½ somersaults tuck in round five and then finished with 75.60 points on his back 2 ½ somersaults with 2 ½ twists.
Hedberg also finished 11th in the semifinals after placing fifth in the preliminaries.
China’s Yang Jian won the gold with 515.55 points. Japan’s Rikuto Tamai scored 488.00 for silver, edging China’s Yang Hao, who finished with 485.45 points for bronze.
Hayden and Schultz scored 273.90 to finish seventh in their first competition as a synchro team. They were paired together after Hailey Hernandez withdrew from the World Championships. Hayden and Schultz were in fifth place after scoring 91.20 points on their first two dives, and they came through with 60.30 points on their back 2 ½ somersaults pike in round three. They added 59.40 points on a reverse 2 ½ somersaults pike and finished out their list with 63 points on their front 2 ½ somersaults with one twist. Earlier in the week, Schultz advanced to the individual 1-meter final and Hayden placed 13th in the individual 3-meter semifinals.
China’s Chen Yiwen and Chang Yani won gold with 343.14 points, and Japan’s Rin Kaneto and Sayaka Mikami took silver at 303.00. Australia’s Maddison Keeney and Anabelle Smith rounded out the medalist with 294.12 points for bronze.
The U.S. finished the FINA World Championships with three diving medals. Delaney Schnell (Tucson, Ariz.) was part of two of them, pairing with Katrina Young (Shoreline, Wash./Trojan Dive Club) for silver in women’s synchronized 10-meter and with Carson Tyler (Moultrie, Ga./Johansen Diving Academy) for bronze in mixed synchronized 10-meter. Sarah Bacon (Indianapolis, Ind./Minneapolis, Minn.) won silver in women’s 1-meter.
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