Jessica Livingston, left, and Laura Wilkinson placed third in the 2008
AT&T USA Diving Grand Prix women's synchronized platform diving
competition on Saturday, May 10, 2008.
The American divers are back.
Back on the international map, back on the medal podium, back to prove they are among the world's best.
It might be a bit premature because the true test will come in the Beijing Olympics, but this year the Americans are making a statement. It happened earlier this year in the World Cup held in Beijing and again Saturday at the International Swimming Hall of Fame pool in Fort Lauderdale.
Americans medaled in all three final events of the USA Diving Grand Prix, and more medal opportunities await in Sunday's finale.
Troy Dumais and Laura Wilkinson led the way. Dumais won a silver medal in the men's 3-meter springboard final Saturday, and Wilkinson won a silver in the women's platform final and a bronze with partner Jessica Livingston in the synchronized women's platform final.
Both two of the more veteran Team USA divers, they tried to downplay the notion that success in one of the major meets on the international circuit would translate into medals in Beijing. But when pressed further, both put some stock in their medals and the rise of U.S. diving after a humbling shutout in the 2004 Athens Games.
Whether the U.S. can topple the gold standard -- the mighty Chinese -- remains to be seen.
''We can compete with the best, we can push them and we can win medals,'' Dumais said matter-of-factly. ``They have a great team, they're China, they're at home. People think they're the best divers, but they're human. They can be beat.''
The Chinese weren't beaten in two of three finals Saturday. Li Kang and Hao Wang prevailed in the women's synchronized platform with a score of 348.36, and Hao captured a second gold medal in the women's platform final by earning a score of 420.30 on five dives. She cruised past Wilkinson, who finished with 360.80 points. Japan's Ken Terauchi won gold in the men's 3-meter springboard final.
`A STEPPINGSTONE'
But the fact Americans are medaling in international events should not be overlooked, Dumais and Wilkinson said.
''Whether you say it's a sign or not, it's a steppingstone,'' Dumais said. ``You can't just go into the Olympics and win a medal.''
Asked whether the Americans have returned as Olympic medal contenders, Wilkinson said: ''I really do feel like it. In the [Beijing] Olympic pool in February, our team was second to China'' in the World Cup. ``It's a lot of improvement as a team and country.''
Wilkinson and Dumais are among the favorites to earn Olympic berths, giving each one last shot at medals. Wilkinson won a gold in the women's platform in the 2000 Sydney Games and Dumais has come up short in the past two Olympics.
It's their main driving force.
''I thought if I do well in Athens, I'll probably retire, but not getting the medal and being so close it was like a carrot dangled in front of me,'' said Wilkinson, 30.
``. . . It kind of spurred me on and with learning all these new dives over the last couple years. It's kept it exciting and fresh, and it doesn't feel like the same old thing every day. It's still fun.''
MOTIVATIONAL TOOL
Dumais, 28, said he takes his memory of the medal-lacking 2004 Games to ``push me each and every day to win the gold medal.''
There's another development fueling them: a younger generation of American divers also poised to make the Olympic team.
As Wilkinson and Dumais showed in the finals Saturday, younger does not necessarily mean better.
''It's experience versus youth,'' Wilkinson said, laughing.
But when the Americans size up the competition it will face in August, they view it differently. The Americans are determined to medal no matter their age, and they just see the loftier expectations pinned on the host country.
''Hey, there's no pressure on us, it's all going to be on them,'' said Ken Armstrong, Wilkinson's coach. ``They're supposed to be the greatest in the world, and I want to see it. It's no bargain being the front-runner.''
It's also no bargain coming up short as the U.S. divers experienced in Athens, a disappointment that still burns and perhaps has helped push the Americans back toward the top.