Australians take home diving Gold

Australian duo Sharleen Stratton and Bree Cole dived their way to a Gold Medal on the first morning of diving at the Commonwealth Games.

The pair finished in first place in the three metre synchronised springboard, doing so in fine style, finishing with 296.07 points, 22.35 clear of nearest rivals, the Canadian team of Rebecca Barras and Melanie Rinaldi, who took Silver with 273.72 points.

Fellow Australians, the highly rated Chantelle Newbery – who starred in Athens, 2004 – and Kathryn Blackshaw failed to score a medal, making a meal of their final dive and losing 3rd place in the process.

Stratton and Cole began their day slowly, but by the end were in good form, leading for the final two rounds once they hit their straps.

Newbery and Blackshaw were in foreign territory, having only paired up a week earlier, with Blackshaw drafted into the team just prior to the games when Newbery’s regular partner Loudy Tourky was forced to withdraw due to an ankle injury.

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