Twelve novice divers from Southampton Diving Academy, who train at the Quays Swimming and Diving Complex, travelled to Cologne in Germany to compete in the Niesen Cup and came back with two medals.
Competing against clubs from Germany, the Netherlands, Lithuania and Croatia the team faced a tough challenge in the 1m springboard novice events.
The most successful diver from Southampton was Elliott Pope (11) who took the silver in his age group. Diving to a consistently high standard throughout the competition Elliott fought off stiff competition to come out just ahead of close rivals in all the top 6 places. His forward 1 ½ somersaults earned him 6’s from the judges, which was enough to keep him ahead of the crowd.
Elizabeth Osborne (11) took the bronze medal in her event with a creditable score of 104 points. Opening with a dive not quite up to her usual standard, she nonetheless went on to give a strong performance including an inward dive piked which attracted a score of 7, earning her a well deserved place on the rostrum.
Coach for the meet, Chris Gravestock, was very pleased with the outcome. "The team did really well," he said. "Particularly considering that for most of them this was their first international event their performance was impressive. This was useful competition experience and we can expect to see more good results from these youngsters in the future."
Full results:
Elliott Pope, silver; Brendon Coe, 5th; Brandon Parker, 15th; Jamie Bushnell, 18th; James Nicholson, 4th; Daniel Whitehead, 8th; Elizabeth Osborne, bronze; Catherine Tilling, 8th; Chloe Bowers, 10th; Bethany Gibbons, 17th; Alex Thorne, 8th; Lucy Baines, 21st