Gold Medalist Quan Hongchan (C) of China, Silver Medalist Chen Yuxi (L) of China and Bronze Medalist Pandelela Rinong Pamg of Malaysia attend the awarding ceremony for Women's 10m Platform of Diving at the 19th Asian Games in Hangzhou, east China's Zhejiang Province, Oct. 3, 2023. (Xinhua/Xue Yuge)
HANGZHOU, Oct. 3 (Xinhua) -- Chinese divers Quan Hongchan and Wang Zongyuan secured gold on Tuesday as the host nation dominated, claiming all eight gold medals available so far at the Hangzhou Asian Games.
Olympic champion Quan outshone her teammate Chen Yuxi in a thrilling battle in the women's 10m platform. The 16-year-old Quan and 18-year-old Chen, who joined forces to clinch their first Asian Games title in the synchronized event last Saturday, once again demonstrated their exceptional skills.
Quan led the first three dives, with Chen surpassing her after the fourth round. However, Quan executed her final dive nearly flawlessly, earning a set of 10s to finish with a total of 438.20 points. Chen, a triple world champion in the event, narrowly missed the top spot by 2.55 points. Malaysia's Pandelela Rinong Pmag finished a distant third with 280.50 points.
"I didn't notice that I was behind, but I was happy when I saw the score (after the fifth round). Chen and I did not communicate during the game, but we will communicate after the game," said Quan, referring to the fourth round when Chen briefly took the lead.
"I didn't think much because I just focused on my movements. I was a little nervous at that time. So I made a lot of changes on the last dive," she added.
Quan gained fame at the Tokyo Olympics when she outperformed Chen with a new mark of 466.20 points to win the gold. Meanwhile, Chen triumphed in last year's Budapest worlds and the Fukuoka worlds in July.
Over the last three years, Quan and Chen have claimed all major titles in the synchro 10m platform event.
When asked about the difference between the synchro final and Tuesday's individual final, Quan said, "I feel like there's someone missing next to me. I went diving by myself today, so I'm a little nervous."
In the men's 3m springboard, Wang, who had already won the 1m springboard at the Hangzhou Asiad, led throughout, collecting 542.30 points for the gold. His teammate Zheng Jiuyuan ranked second with 508.55 points, and South Korea's Yi Jae-gyeong came third with 426.20 points.
The diving competition will conclude on Wednesday when the women's 3m springboard and men's 10m platform finals will take place. ■
