Courtesy: British Swimming
A total of 21 British divers have been selected for the opening legs of the 2019 FINA Diving World Series and FINA Grand Prix, which kick off in just less than a month’s time.
Following an action-packed weekend of competition at the British National Diving Cup at Plymouth’s Life Centre, the British Diving management team have selected an eight-strong team that will travel to the Far-East to compete at the first two stops on the 2019 World Series circuit.
The first port of call for the GB contingent will be the Japanese city of Sagamihara on the opening weekend of March, with the group then travelling to the Chinese capital, Beijing, a few days later. There they will compete at the iconic Water Cube, home of the 2008 Olympic and Paralympic aquatic events.
Olympic medalist and double 2019 National Diving Cup winner Tom Daley will spearhead the talented group of divers, as he looks to resume his position at the forefront of men’s international platform diving following a year away from the boards.
London-based Daley will also be hoping to build on his performance with new 10m Synchro partner Matty Lee after a debut competition win last weekend in Britain’s ocean city.
Ross Haslam will make his World Series debut in the Men’s 3m event, whilst Eden Cheng and Lois Toulson will resume their European gold medal winning partnership in the Women’s 10m Synchro.
Three days of diving commences in Sagamihara on 1 March, with the Beijing event taking place from 7-9 March.
Heading west will be a group of 15 divers who will be looking to make an early season impact in the FINA Grand Prix series, attending both the Canadian and USA legs.
National Cup winner Millie Fowler will look to challenge for an international podium in the Women’s 3m Springboard event, having competed in the Grand Prix event in Canada last year. Fowler was “lost for words” following her victory last weekend and will take confidence into Calgary and Mission Viejo after seeing off a quality field in Plymouth.
After his switch down to the springboard to work with Jack Laugher, Dan Goodfellow will also attend the Grand Prix in Canada in the individual 3m event, having won his first individual national title at the weekend.
The Calgary leg will run from the 4-7 April with the Mission Viejo leg taking place from 11-14 April.
Athletes selected for World Series legs 1 & 2:
Jack Laugher
Dan Goodfellow
Ross Haslam
Thomas Daley
Matthew Lee
Grace Reid
Katherine Torrance
Lois Toulson
Eden Cheng
Athletes selected for Grand Prix legs 2 & 3:
Emily Martin
Phoebe Banks
Gemma McArthur
Maria Papworth
Scarlett Mew Jensen
Millie Fowler
Kyle Kothari
Noah Williams
Matthew Dixon
Anthony Harding
Jordan Houlden (USA only)
James Heatly
Daniel Goodfellow (Canada only)
Ross Haslam (Canada only)
Jack Laugher* (Canada only)
*subject to FINA approval
