On Saturday, Australia’s Maddison Keeney not only won her second world championship title on the 1m springboard eight years after her first, but her victory in Singapore ended China’s hopes of a gold medal sweep in all 13 diving events.
SINGAPORE – At 29, Maddison Keeney of Australia may have been oldest woman in the 1m final on Saturday, but it didn’t prevent her from nailing the hardest dive of the contest (a forward 2½ with one twist) in last round to clinch her first individual gold medal since 2017 and handily defeat the runner-up from China, Li Yajie, by 17.75 points. Li was the 2022 world champion and 2023 world silver-medalist on 1m.
“I know that with the high level of difficulty list, I have the potential to win maybe more easily than others,” Keeney admitted. “It’s really good practice for me to go out and compete with everyone thinking that I can do it. It’s also really good practice for my 3-meter event, which is my main event.”
As for her future, Keeney said, “I’ll definitely keep going until 2028, as long as I don’t have any injuries or anything. Beyond that, I’m not too sure. The next Olympics are in my hometown [Brisbane 2032], so it’s scary because I’ll feel like competing for that. As long as I’m having fun, I’ll keep diving.”
Li, the silver medalist said that in the three years since her last 1m world title, “My opponents have changed – they’re stronger now – [but] I didn’t look at how others were performing. I only focus on myself.” As for placing second, Li said, “I didn’t handle the dives and some details well enough.”
Italy’s Chiarra Pellacani, 22, claimed the bronze medal – about two hours after competing in the Mixed Team event where she helped Italy place sixth.
Pellacani said of the bronze: “It means a lot because it’s my first solo medal at World Championships. I was trying to get it for years. I knew there were a lot of good divers in the competition but, at the same time, I knew I could compete and keep calm.”
Between the 1m prelims, the mixed team event, and the 1m final, Pellacani explained, “I was in the pool the whole day. But it was worth it. I think competing a lot [in the past] helped me to stay focused.”
Hailey Hernandez, 22, of the US placed fourth, missing her first world championship podium by a mere 35-hundredths of a point.
The youngest athlete in the final, 14-year-old Mia Cueva Lobato of Mexico, finished seventh. She and her twin sister, Lia, plan to compete in the 3m synchro event on 29 July.
Notably absent in the 1m event was Keeney’s teammate, the 2024 world champion Alysha Koloi who chose not to defend her title in Singapore and instead represent Australia in the Mixed Team event.
Up Next:
Two more world champions will be determined on Sunday. First, China will try to remain undefeated in mixed 10m synchro and vie for a seven-peat. After that, Osmar Olvera Ibarra of Mexico will attempt to defend his 2024 world title in men’s 1m springboard.