Sayaka Mikami was 6th and Ryoka Enomoto was 8th in the women's board diving in the World Cup, which doubled as the final qualifying and test tournament for the Tokyo Olympics.
The Diving World Cup kicked off on May 1 at the Tokyo Aquatics Center in Koto-ku, Tokyo, the venue for the Olympics, with athletes from 46 countries including Japan participating.
On the 4th of the 4th day of the tournament, a total of 3 events were held for both men and women, of which Mikami and Enomoto from Japan participated in the women's board diving final.
Of these, Mikami, who has been nominated as the representative of the Tokyo Olympics as a result of the world championships, challenged the big skill "5154B" that twists twice while taking a step forward in the fifth performance at the end of the final. I did.
In this performance, the entry of water was disturbed and it was 59.50, but the total of 5 runs marked 307.20 and was 6th.
Mikami challenged the technique "5154B" that he is working on to win a medal at the Tokyo Olympics.
Taking the one-year postponement of the Olympics as a plus, I have been practicing while managing my diet more thoroughly and losing about 3 kg in order to improve my body sharpness.
Before the tournament, I was able to decide on the entry of water firmly, and I was "confident", but before the actual performance, I became unable to breathe due to extreme tension, and the entry of water was disturbed.
Mikami said, "It was a very good experience to be able to show off this technique on the stage of the final of the World Cup. I couldn't get into the tip of the board firmly, so the entry of water was disturbed. Mental is an issue. I think, so I want to practice more and improve the accuracy from now on. "
Coach Chimaki Yasuda, who coaches Mikami, also said, "I was overly nervous because I was conscious of medals, but it was a good content for acting in that. I challenged 5154B and finished 6th. It was a big achievement. I would like to use this technique if I remain in the final at the Olympics. "
Enomoto, who finished 6th in the semi-finals on the 3rd and was newly nominated for the Tokyo Olympics, showed his dynamic performance in the first three and increased his score to reach the provisional 4th place.
The entry of the water was disturbed by the "305B", which flew forward for the fourth run and made two and a half turns behind, but the total of the five performances marked 299.10 and was eighth.
Enomoto said, "I didn't think it would be so difficult to get the 300 points I was aiming for, but my mistakes are clear, so if I can clear them, I can aim for 310 points. How will my performance be evaluated at international competitions? I knew it, and it was a tournament with a lot of harvest. "
For the Olympics, which was decided to be the representative, he said, "I want to be more sharp in the way I show and perform. I think that I will get points if I can be aware of the details of the entry of water. I want to practice carefully before the actual performance."