When you put two champions together, you constitute a Chinese/Colombian pair and you compete in a mixed international team event in diving, the result can only be one: gold. Lin Shan (CHN) and Daniel Restrepo Garcia (COL) successfully paired for the last diving event at the Youth Olympic Games, getting the gold in 391.35. In this team competition (it only exists in the YOG), divers from different countries compete in pairs, alternatively from the 3m springboard and 10m platform.
Lin was the individual champion in both events, while Restrepo Garcia was the winner in the lower board. Based on this, the Chinese talent did two dives from the 10m (and one from 3m), while the Colombian ace did the opposite. The result was a very regular competition, and the lead of the final from the second round.
“It’s difficult to say what I was expecting for this final. In the normal life, we are not diving together, so it’s fun to form these duets for the YOG. In the end, we were quite consistent and we managed to win”, confessed, smiling, Restrepo Garcia.
For the silver, another Chinese young diver, this time in the men’s category, Lian Junjie, paired with Germany’s Elena Wassen for an accumulated total of 390.10. Lian was also second in the 10m platform individual event, while Wassen was sixth on the higher board. The Chinese was the decisive asset of the team, performing on a very solid way his three dives (two on the platform and one from the 3m). His last combination, a reverse 3 ½ somersaults (tuck) received a massive 96.90 points, which were decisive for the second overall place.
The bronze medal went to the Ukrainian/Russian pair formed by Sofiia Lyskun and Ruslan Ternovoi. After their six dives (three for each athlete), they accumulated 371.15, completing a successful diving competition for both of them. Lyskun was second in the 10m platform, while Ternovoi collected three bronze medals at these Games, after finishing third in the both individual events.