Jack Laugher and Chris Mears have earned Team GB’s first ever diving gold medal at the Olympics, clinching victory in the men’s 3m synchro in Rio de Janeiro.
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Laugher and Mears were always considered to be in contention having won bronze at the most recent world championships, however they had hardly dared to believe they could win the event.
Chinese divers had been targeting a sweep of all eight gold medals at the Rio diving competition, after winning six of out the total at the London 2012 Olympics.
U.S. secured a shock silver after producing the dive of the competition in the final round to score a massive 98.04 – piling the pressure on Laugher and Mears in the process.
Qin Kai and Cao Yuan had to settle for bronze behind the United States.
Laugher, 21, and Mears, 23, made a composed start and placed second behind China after the opening two mandatory dives with scores of 52.80 and 53.40. Their forward 4 1/2 somersault with tuck was well executed.
Defending silver medallists, Russian pair Evgenii Kuznetsov and Ilia Zakharov, fell away in the fourth round as they posted a disappointing score of 62.01 for their forward 2-1/2 somersaults with three twists.
The US duo produced a phenomenal final dive, to heap pressure on the young Britons, but the indomitable British pair weren’t to be denied, with a magnificent 4½ somersault entry on their crucial last attempt.
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But China faltered, scoring 83.22, which sparked jubilant celebrations among the British contingent.
