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We ended on a fantastic note yesterday! David Boudia did not miss a single dive in the men's platform final and gave us our first medal of the 2008 World Cup- a bronze!
To top that off, Kelci (Bryant) and Ariel (Rittenhouse) not only earned the US our final Olympic spot on the women's 3 meter synchro but they did it by earning our team a second bronze medal! It was quite a night and Team USA finished second in the overall team competition. This is a great place to be six months out of the Olympic Games.
Today we had a chance to do a little sightseeing of the Imperial Palace, also known as the Forbidden City. Then we headed down to the silk market where we all went on a major shopping spree! It's crazy in the market but a lot of fun bargaining :)
I'm packing right now as I'm heading to Shenzhen for the China Open bright and early in the morning. I will post pictures from yesterday and today once I get settled in down there.
So long Beijing...
So Christina and Kelci did great in the women's 3 meter event, both making it into finals. Christina really stepped up to the competition and finished 4th place, less than half a point out of the medals! It was a great competition and so fun to watch!
Also, Thomas and David both advanced to the men's semifinals in platform and because of this, earned the USA both individual spots in the men's 10 meter! Way to go guys!
This morning in semifinals, Thomas was a little off his usual game, but David did some amazing dives and will be diving again in the finals tonight!
Kelci and Ariel had the women's 3 meter synchro prelims this morning and got off to a great start seeding themselves second for tonight's final. This is our last spot that we need for a full US contingent this summer at the Olympic Games.
On another fun note, Henry Kissinger (former Secretary of State) was at the pool today watching! We had a chance to meet and talk with him! I added some pictures so you all can see:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=14376&l=330d7&id=506127458 That's all for now from Beijing! Laura
Sorry for the delay in updates! We got home really late after finals last night and I was away from the hotel until 11pm tonight. But I have lots of updates for you...
As many of you have probably already seen, my semifinals and finals did not go well. I could make a lot of excuses and give you reasons as to why this happened, but it really all boils down to my brain. I let my issues with reverses affect me. I did a good job getting my head in a better place before the finals, but I couldn't hold an entry because of my tricep and despite my improved efforts in the warmups my reverse still got the better of me. So I finished 12th. I am disappointed with my performance here, but the great part is that I know God will use this to grow me. "We also glory in tribulations, knowing that tribulation produces perseverance; and perseverance, character; and character, hope. Now hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us." Romans 5:3-5
There's also a little irony in the situation. In 2000 I had the exact same result in the world cup in the Sydney Olympic pool. Perhaps I'm on a good path... The good news is I know exactly what I need to work on and I have hope that, like 8 years ago, I can make a comeback that will rock the world.
Haley also made it into the platform finals last night and finished a solid 8th place. Troy and Chris both did very well in the semifinals this morning on 3 meter placing 4th and 5th, advancing them to the finals. Chris had a solid list in the finals to finish in 8th place, and Troy had a terrific list nailing so many dives for 9's for a 4th place finish with his highest world competition score of 500.85! Way to go Troy!
Haley was up again today with her platform synchro partner Mary Beth. They had a good prelims seeding them in 4th place for the finals. The finals proved to be a very tough competition as all the countries were vying for the final 4 available Olympic synchro spots. The top 4 teams were the same top 4 as last year's World Championships, so the next 4 places received the final Olympic spots for their country, and our girls nabbed us a spot by finishing in that precious 8th place position! Way to go girls :)
Tomorrow we have men's platform synchro prelims and finals and women's 3 meter springboard prelims. We have already secured all of our spots in these events. But let's cheer on Team USA!
Outside of competition news, when we first arrived here it was sunny and blue skies. We were told everyone was off of work because of the Chinese New Year. Well, that celebration has come to an end and everyday the smog and pollution has gotten worse and worse. At night you cannot even see buildings except for glowing lights. During the day it is also difficult to see the buildings, even the giant bird's nest. The pool has also gotten hazier inside as it has grown worse outside.
On happier news, I had an interview with some Chinese media today that was actually very encouraging. They asked me if I knew that I was famous in China, and I said I didn't know that. They told me it was because of my win in the Sydney Olympics and because of my smile :) They also told me that Chen Roulin (the winner of the women's platform event yesterday) told the media that I was her role model. They keep asking me how I am able to keep up with the "little girls" at my age and how am I so strong and able to dive platform at my age. It's funny, but it's very complimentary and made me feel a lot more encouraged following yesterday's events.
We also took a little trip in between events today to the Silk Market. It's basically a huge flee market with everything you can think and people grabbing your arm and trying to get you to buy their stuff! It's great fun trying to bargain and get stuff really cheap. We didn't have a lot of time today, so we're going to try to go again in a couple of days.
Sorry about the novel, but it's been a very eventful two days! Thank you for all the emails and prayers- I really appreciate them!So long for now, from the famous smiling diver, Laura :-)
Today was a good start for team USA. Our synchro men did a great job on 3 meter ending up 6th place. It’s Chris and Jevon’s first world meet together in synchro and they finished with a huge dive of reverse three and a half for 9’s! Way to go guys!
Women’s platform was also solid as Haley and I both made it on to the semifinal round. This also means that with Haley finishing in the top 18, we are now guaranteed both women’s platform spots for the USA in the Olympics! We have semifinals tomorrow morning at 10am and the top 12 advance to the finals which are at 7pm.
As for my own diving, I was pretty solid with the exception of my reverse three and half which I have been having a little confidence issue on. In the meet, I actually went in completely vertical but because I second guessed myself, I didn’t really kick out of the dive, so that explains my low scores. Kenny and I were working on this on 5 meter before the meet and had some breakthroughs, but I didn’t have a chance to work on it on 10 meter right before the contest, so my anxiousness got the best of me. Tomorrow morning though, I should have plenty of time to do some on 10 meter and regain my confidence. Everything else feels really good and this meet has been a lot of fun so far! If you want to see full results, go to: http://www.diving2008.org.cn/en/results/index.html
In addition to the women’s platform events, the men’s 3 meter prelims are also tomorrow.
With our competition starting tomorrow, I thought I would give you a little update and a website to check for results.
Thankfully, the start lists are not nearly as long as we thought they would be! Both individual platform events have 47 divers, women’s springboard has 52 and men’s springboard has 61. They are still large events but better than we initially thought. We were also told that each dive would last about 30 seconds in prelims while it will be closer to a minute in semis and finals. This is good because it reduces the time of the prelims nearly in half, plus they have decided not to announce each score in the prelims to cut time as well. So my prelim event should last between two and two and a half hours. Out of 47 divers I am number 7 in the order, which I’m very excited about and this means I’ll probably be done a good 20-30 minutes before the event is over!
The women’s and men’s platform synchro events have 16 and 17 teams respectively, while the women’s and men’s 3 meter synchro have 20 and 22 teams. Here’s the website to check out the start lists and where results should be posted: http://www.diving2008.org.cn/en/results/index.html
I had a good workout today and I’m really excited to start the competition tomorrow!
I just wanted to let you all know that I posted a little video tour from 10 meter in the Olympic Pool.
This is our last day of training before the competition begins tomorrow. We have heard that prelims will be very long as there are over 50 divers in both platform events and there could be over 70 divers in the springboard events. I believe there are upwards of around 20 teams in the synchro events as well. So, we are looking at possibly 4-6 hour individual prelim events. Please pray for endurance for our team.
I hope you all have had a chance to look at the pictures of the pool. It is so amazing to train in! Workouts have been going well and I’m excited to begin competing tomorrow!
I have my video camera and computer connections with me, so I will post videos from the meet after my competition is over. I will also make sure to keep you updated with results.
Also, if you notice any problems on my website or links not working, please let me know as I cannot view it to double check!
Since I’m not sure the situation with my website, I uploaded a ton of pictures to my Facebook page which you can check out here:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=14376&l=330d7&id=506127458
The pool is quite amazing, as you’ll see in the pictures. It looks like bubbles and when you touch the material, it actually bends. You can see through it and it lights up at night. It seats 17,000 people. We were worried what the surface of the platform would be as China is well known for their coco matting surface, which is more or less like a woven welcome mat. Not exactly ideal for handstands and front approaches. Well, our worries were alleviated today as we discovered that the platforms have brand new rough-tex surfacing and it’s not slippery at all! The springboard divers have all said how soft and springy the boards were, too. So overall, our team is very excited with this facility!
We’ve arrived in Beijing! We were moved to a new hotel which is directly behind the Bird’s Nest- the track & field and opening ceremonies stadium. The pool is on the other side of the bird’s nest and we got a little glimpse of it on our drive in, but in 30 minutes we’re heading over there for our first workout in the water cube! I will take tons of pictures- don’t worry!
With an odd number of girls on our team, I was fortunate to get my own room, which in this brand new hotel equates to an enormous suite with a little glimpse of the bird’s nest. I’ve attached a picture of the lovely view .
One more note, my website is banned in China most likely because of my faith in Jesus. I was told of this before I got here, and I cannot access it from my room. I’m not sure if I will be able to upload pictures and other things on it, but I will keep you posted. And never fear, because I do have a few other ways I will be able to show you pictures and videos.
I’ve posted some pictures on the website.
We’re heading to the pool soon and then right to the airport to go to Beijing. I will post more pictures once we’re settled in tonight in Beijing.
So far, Korea has been amazing and I wish we could spend some more time here. But on the same note, I’m very excited to see how all the Olympic venues and atmosphere are shaping up!
I just wanted to say thank you for all of the prayers and good luck emails! Our team arrived safely in Seoul, Korea this evening. We were greeted by a very nice group of people with signs and flowers and lots of picture taking J Then we had about an hour drive to our hotel- Hotel Castle. Sounds fancy, huh? It is! We’re about 5 minutes from the World Cup soccer stadium and that’s where the pool is we’ll be training in. I’m not sure if this is the 1988 Olympic pool or a different training facility, but I’ll take some pictures tomorrow and let you check it out for yourself!
Well, it’s late and I’m very sleep deprived, so I’m going to get some heavy sleep in now. Thank you again for your prayers and emails and I miss you all already! And I posted a picture (of the team) on the main page of my website of our arrival: www.laurawilkinson.com
I leave this morning for Seoul, Korea where we will be training for a couple of days before heading to Beijing, China for the World Cup. I will be diving individual platform at the World Cup and the week following this meet, I will be flying down to Shenzhen, China to dive synchronized platform at the China Open. So it will be a fun filled 3 weeks in China!
I will definitely send updates and pictures! The World Cup is in the brand new Olympic pool, also known as the Water Cube.
I will let you know once I have internet up and running on the other side of the world!