WUHAN, China- Olympic silver medalists Sam Dorman (Tempe, Ariz./Miami, Fla.) and Michael Hixon (Amherst, Mass./Bloomington, Ind.) finished fifth with 392.82 points in the men’s 3-meter synchro finals on day two of FINA World Cup competition. In Tuesday’s women’s 10-meter platform preliminaries, Tarrin Gilliland (Liberty Hill, Texas/Midland, Texas) and Olympian Katrina Young (Shoreline, Wash./Tallahassee, Fla.) clinched spots for the women’s 10-meter semifinals, which will take place Wednesday, June 6.
In third place after two rounds, Dorman and Hixon slipped to eighth place in the third round before building momentum to climb up to fifth place. A reverse 1½ somersaults with 3½ twists for 75.60 points in the fourth round and a follow-up inward 3½ somersaults for 72.42 points put the pair in position to climb the ladder. Their final dive, a front 4½ somersaults tuck, sealed their spot for fifth after scoring 75.24 points. China’s Cao Yuan and Xie Siyi won the gold with 448.74 points. Great Britain’s Jack Laugher and Chris Mears were second at 440.64, and Mexico’s Jahir Ocampo and Rommel Pacheco scored 435.72 points for bronze. Dorman and Hixon’s performance clinched a spot for the 2019 FINA Diving World Series in the men’s 3-meter synchro event.
Young placed fifth with 344.75 points in the 10-meter preliminaries, and Gilliland placed eighth with 310.25 points as both divers advanced to the semifinals for Team USA. Young, who was fourth in Monday’s mixed synchronized 10-meter platform event, maintained consistency throughout the individual 10-meter preliminaries, including an inward 3½ somersaults tuck for 75.20 points in the fourth round. Gilliland proved to be resilient in the final round after missing an inward 3½ somersaults tuck in the fourth round. The teenager’s back 2½ somersaults with 1½ twists landed Gilliland 70.40 points.
The World Cup continues Wednesday, with Young and Gilliland competing in the 10-meter platform semifinals. Hixon also competes again Wednesday, when he and Andrew Capobianco (Holly Springs, N.C./Bloomington, Ind.) compete in the individual men’s 3-meter preliminary. The individual women’s 10-meter platform finals will be broadcast Wednesday at 6 a.m. ET on the Olympic Channel and replayed at 4 p.m. on NBCSN as well as 8 p.m. ET and 11:30 p.m. ET on the Olympic Channel.
