KUALA LUMPUR – Despite qualifying for the Paris Olympics on an unused quota, national diver Nur Dhabitah Sabri proved her doubters wrong by staging a superb comeback in her last two dives to reach the women’s 3m springboard final today.
Nur Dhabitah, 25, cleared the semi-finals by finishing eighth in the 18-diver field, after amassing a five-dive total of 286.95 points at the Aquatics Centre. Only the top 12 divers advanced to the final.
Speaking to the press after the semi-finals, Nur Dhabitah – who came agonisingly close to winning a bronze in Tokyo three years ago – said she owed today’s turnaround to her coach, Nor Aznizal Najib.
Nur Dhabitah scored 67.50 points in her first dive but started falling behind the pecking order when she could only score 55.50 and 46.50 points in her second and third attempts.
This was when Nor Aznizal’s words of encouragement made the difference.
“It was a roller coaster ride; my first dive was awesome, second was not too bad but it was after the third when I started trembling.
“This was when my coach told me to not think of my previous dives but to focus on what I had in front of me. He encouraged the comeback because I was already feeling down,” said Nur Dhabitah, who would go on to score 57.00 points and 60.45 points in her fourth and final dives.
Commenting further, Nur Dhabitah said while her preparation for the Olympics has not been the greatest due to her last-minute wild card inclusion, she never once doubted her ability.
“My preparations for the Olympics were not as good as those who already knew they had qualified. I had to wait because I got in on an unused quota.
“But I am an Olympian, and I know I belong to be in the Olympics,” she added.
Ahead of her final tomorrow, Nur Dhabitah is well aware that she will need to score a total of more than 325.00 points to stand a chance of winning a medal.
“The competition is very high. Every diver is giving their best, so I will also need to be in my best shape,” said Nur Dhabitah, who scored 326.15 points in the final in Tokyo 2020.
In the semi-finals, China’s Chen Yiwen came out tops with a five-dive total of 360.85 points, followed by Australia’s Maddison Keeney with 334.70 points, and Italy’s Chiara Pellacani with 324.75 points. – August 8, 2024