DIVERS OF PENZA COME UP WITH GOODS IN SYDNEY

Two young divers who represented Australia at last year’s World Junior Diving Championships in Russia have come away with winning doubles at the NSW Championships on the weekend.

Brittany O’Brien and Nicholas Jeffree were the stand-out performers among the small field of divers that competed on the weekend.

O’Brien showed her potential when she qualified for the platform final in Penza, Russia, last year, finishing 12th behind Australian gold medalist Lara Larvit.

On the weekend she showed her versatility, winning not only the NSW Open platform final, but also the 1-metre springboard title.

Jeffree, who missed the final of the platform in Penza, posted a solid 401.90 to win gold in Sydney, and also came away with the 1-metre title.

With small fields and short turnaround times between divers, the emphasis was on the athletes improving their scores from preliminary rounds to finals.

The positive sign for Diving Australia was that most divers were able to better their scores, some quite dramatically.

Ben On, who found himself as the only entrant in the 3-metre event, improved his score by 25 points, while Rachel Foord posted a 15-point better score in winning silver behind O’Brien in the platform.

Isabella Ashdown had an encouraging weekend, picking up silver behind O’Brien in the 1-metre event (missing gold by just over one point), and then snaring gold in the 3-metre, finishing less than three points clear of Genevieve de La Motte.