The diving drama began on Saturday when a 14-year-old and Chinese partner were anointed world champions in the mixed synchro 10m event.

Next, on the women’s 1m springboard, the 2022 World Champion lost her crown to her Chinese teammate. And, in the final act, Olympic berths were at stake men’s 3m synchro. Great Britain had a chance to overtake China on the last dive but China prevailed to sweep the first three (of 13) gold medals awarded in Fukuoka.

To find out who won and which other divers stepped onto the podium (including a trio from Mexico), read on.

Mixed synchro 10m

In mixed synchro 10m, China may have led the entire way, but it didn’t have the highest-scoring dives in each round. Mexico outscored Wang Feilong and Zhang Jiaqi on the last two dives to claim silver. Hiroki Ito and Minami Itahashi, put Japan on the medal chart with the bronze.

Wang and Zhang’s 339.54-point victory gave China its fifth gold medal in a row in this discipline to keep China undefeated since the event’s world championship debut in 2015.  By the third round (of five), WANG and ZHANG had a 26.94-point lead over the field, but the execution of their last two dives (both with 3.2 DD) didn’t significantly extend it.

Still, the result was especially remarkable for the 14-year-old WANG.  

“I am very excited. [I] never thought of getting gold medal,” he said. “I was very nervous. International games are not the same as national games. A lot of people are watching us.”

Mexico’s Jose Balleza Isaias, 28, and Viviana del Angel Peniche, 23, captured silver by outscoring the entire field on their fourth and fifth dives. It wasn’t the first time either diver had stepped on a world championship podium, either.  BALLEZA ISAIAS claimed bronze in this event in 2019, and del ANGEL PENICHE was a 2017 silver medallist in the mixed team event.

Together, del Angel Peniche said, “We felt very confident in the tower – and I feel very confident with my partner. He is really funny, chill, and that is helpful for me.”

Japan’s Ito and Itahashi, both 23, earned bronze for the host nation thanks to a great third-round dive, an inward 3½ with 3.2 DD.

“I knew that if we got a decisive score in the third round with the 407C, we could ride that wave all the way to the podium,” Ito said. “I am glad that we were able to do that.

“We did not feel much pressure,” Ito added, explaining that the reason for their performance on Saturday  “was because of the support, every time we were introduced. I have nothing but appreciation for all of our Japanese fans.”

The medallists were the only divers to clear 300 points among the 14 pairs in Saturday’s final.

Women’s 1m

A few hours later, China claimed two more medals in the women’s 1m event. The slight surprise was that Lin Shan defeated the 2022 World Champion Li Yajie with an easier dive list.  LIN amassed 318.60 points to finish 12.25 points ahead of runner-up LI who turns 21 on Sunday.

LIN said after winning gold, “I didn’t feel much pressure; it was more about energy and encouragement. I thank [fans] for coming to Japan to cheer for the Chinese team.”

Her teammate LI said, “I am happy to win the silver medal. I feel a bit of pity, but that’s okay. Out of five dives today, I am not really satisfied with the fourth dive [a 305C], because I could do better upon hitting the water.”

Bronze medallist Aranza Vazquez Montano of Mexico squeaked past two-time Olympian Pamela Ware of Canada by 65 hundredths of a point on her final dive to make the podium. The dive was a reverse 2½ with a 3.0 degree of difficulty, the most difficult dive in the competition. Four other women attempted it, including WARE and the silver medallist, LI, who felt that her entry had probably cost her the gold.

Saturday’s bronze was Vazquez Montano's first major international medal, at age 20, although earlier this year, she won a NCAA title on the 1-meter springboard for the University of North Carolina. (It was UNC’s first NCAA diving gold.)

“It is insane,” Vazquez Montano said of capturing the bronze in Fukuoka. “It was one of my dreams. I know I can do it now… and I know that no one can take this away from me.” She hoped to use the confidence to her advantage, as she plans to contest three other events in Fukuoka: women’s 3m, synchro 3m, and mixed team.

Men’s Synchro 3m

The night ended with the only Olympic discipline of the day which also meant that Olympic berths were at stake for the top three nations (excluding France, which was automatically qualified as the host nation of the 2024 Paris Games)

China’s Wang Zongyuan returned to Fukuoka the defending world champion, but this time he had a new partner: Long Daoyi.  After four dives, Wang and Long were more than 18 points ahead of Great Britain’s 2022 silver medallists, Jack Laugher and Anthony Harding.

But the Brits had saved their two toughest dives for last: a forward 4½ (3.8 DD) and a forward 2½ with three twists (3.9 DD). When China’s fifth dive, an inward 3½, was uncharacteristically splashy, Great Britain was 8.61 points away from tying – if not overtaking – the lead. It was not impossible.

Until it was.

China scored 100.32 points on its last dive, the same forward 4½ that the Brits had done in round five. In the end, China won by a massive 456.33 points, nearly 32 points ahead of Great Britain. France’s Jules Bouyer and Alexis Jandard passed the US on the final dive for bronze, but the fourth-place Americans, Tyler Downs and Greg Duncan, still earned an Olympic spot given France’s host nation status. 

Remarkably, the gold medallists had only been partners for three or four months.

“Everyone has their own rhythm,” Wang said, referring to the difficulty of synchro, “so we try to communicate and coordinate well so we can do exactly the same moves.”  Also, he said, “There is intense competition from England, Germany, and the USA; we cannot be easygoing.  We have to devote ourselves to the competition.”

Since both men will compete the individual 3m event on July 20, there was no time to party. “We will stay focused and prepare for our next competition,” Long said.

Meanwhile, Harding was happy to finish second. “I am very satisfied with the majority of my dives,” he said. “Maybe the last dive could have been better. It can be quite hard to get the perfect hurdle on these boards.

Harding also gave much credit to Laugher, who has now has three consecutive silvers in this event. “I have trained with Jack since I was 14 years old, so for the last nine years I have been there to witness his greatness. Seeing someone like Jack who has done it all is what drives me,” he said.

As for France, Bouyer said, “I was completely shocked (to claim the bronze) because I failed my third dive. After that I got focused and we finished [strong] with two big dives.

“It was a big pressure,” Jandard added. “I am proud of us. We have worked together for many years now. The World Championships is a good event, but the Olympics is our goal.”