Jenna Dreyer, the 18-year-old South African diving champion who ”bombed” out in the 10m platform discipline, came good at the Athens Olympics on Wednesday when she qualified for the semifinals in the 3m springboard at the Aquatic Centre.
Dreyer made it through to Thursday’s finals with a 267,84-point total — 79,2 behind Yulia Pakhalina of Russia who won the preliminary.
”I was much more comfortable today,” said Dreyer afterwards. ”I far prefer the board to the platform. My last dive earned me a 7,5. I’m really thrilled to have made it into the semis.”
Dreyer entered the water far more cleanly in her second Olympic experience in the pool after having been over-awed by the Olympic experience in her first outing in the 10m-platform dive, where she finished last.
On Wednesday, she was looking considerably more relaxed and fluent on the board in the 3m springboard event. Lying 23rd after the first dive, Dreyer added a seventh-ranked second dive of 60,30 points to move her through to 16th overall, then she remained consistent to the end to drop only one position.
Should she make it through the semifinals, she will compete in the finals in the evening session. — Sapa