Roseline Filion

SHEFFIELD, England- Wang Xin of China earned a perfect 10 on her second dive in the final en route to the gold medal on women’s 10-metre tower on Saturday at the third stop on the FINA World Series diving circuit.

Xin nailed her inward three and a half for one perfect mark, two 9.5’s and three 9.0’s to win a close battle for gold over compatriot Kang Li who finished at 364.25. Li has finished second at all three stops on the circuit. She held a five point lead heading into her final dive but she missed her twisting dive averaging 5.0’s from the judges. Nora Subschinski of Germany was third at 326.05.

Roseline Filion of Laval, Que., and Meaghan Benfeito of Montreal were eliminated after finishing third and fourth in the second semifinal. Only the top-two from each of the two semis advanced. Filion ranked fifth overall and Benfeito seventh.

Filion, fourth in the event at the previous stop last month in China, squandered a berth in the final when scored poorly on her armstand dive in the fourth round.

“It’s a dive that’s normally very good for me so I wasn’t too happy about that,” said Filion. “But overall I made mistakes throughout the competition. I didn’t have the finish I usually have.”

Benfeito was never able to rebound from subpar scores on her opening forward dive.

“It’s usually one of my best dives,” said Benfeito. “I just had too much energy after the take-off and went a little crooked. But it didn’t affect my confidence too much and I followed that up with a couple of good dives. I did some good things today but there’s a lot to improve.”

Filion and Benfeito, the only two Canadians at the event, compete on 10-metre synchro on Sunday. So far this season on the circuit they have posted second and fourth place finishes.

About the FINA World Series

In 2009, there are four stops on the FINA Diving World Series which was originally launched in 2007.

Last year, Canadian divers won seven medals on the three stops of the 2008 FINA Diving World Series. The Canadian tandem of Émilie Heymans and Marie-Eve Marleau were crowned 10-meter synchro champions after winning one gold and two silver medals.

The Canadian team of Meaghan Benfeito and Roseline Filion qualified for the 2009 FINA World Series based on their performances at the 2008 Olympic Games. Only the top-eight divers in each event are invited to compete in the World Series. At the 2008 Olympic Games, Benfeito and Filion were 7th in the 10-metre synchro event.

Medallists at the FINA Diving World Series receive important cash prizes.

About Diving Plongeon Canada
Diving Plongeon Canada (DPC) was established in 1967 as a not-for-profit organization to promote the growth and awareness of the sport in this country. As a member of FINA, the world’s governing body of aquatic sports, DPC contributes to the development of globally accepted standards of excellence in diving and supports the rules and regulations of international competition. Representing nine provincial diving associations, 67 local diving clubs and close to 4,000 high performance athletes, DPC shares a national commitment to advance the art and sport of diving and to position Canada as the number one diving nation of the world.  For information, visit www.diving.ca.

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