‘Distraught’: Heartbreaking scene as Aussies fall to pieces
The world has watched on as an Aussie pair was left devastated by a disastrous final act at the Paris Olympics.
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Aussie pair Maddison Keeney and Anabelle Smith were visibly “distraught” after falling apart with their final dive.
Keeney and Smith had one hand on the bronze medal before disaster struck with their fifth attempt in the women’s three-metre synchronised springboard final.
Keeney suffered a moment that will haunt her for the rest of her life when she slipped on the board when launching into her dive.
Keeney planted on the edge of the board and was never able to recover while Smith went through her routine of forward 2.5 somersaults and one twist.
They were never together and hit the water with foamy splashes.
They entered the final round of diving in third place behind the dominant Chinese pair of Chang Yani and Chen Yiwen and the USA’s pairing of Sarah Bacon and Kassidy Cook.
Having scored 73.80 and 74.40 in their previous dives, the final dive was only good enough for a score of 48.60.
The Eurosport commentary team in Paris were shocked on the Aussie’s behalf.
“Oh my god. That’s disaster for the Australian pair,” one English commentator said.
“They almost had the bronze in the bag.
“They’re distraught the Aussies. I think they know.”
Aussie tennis great John Millman was also crushed watching on.
“Feel sorry for Keeney and Smith. They were diving so well,” he wrote on Twitter.
Another fan wrote: “That’s heartbreaking for Keeney and Smith”.
Smith was left in tears as the podium dream slipped away, but said later “that’s life”.
“We’re good. We are healthy. We move on,” she said.
In a separate interview, she told the ABC that she had a “bad hurdle and landed on the side of the board” which had an impact on the rest of the dive.
“I screamed underwater. It is obviously going to hit me a bit after this, but I don’t want to ... I’m not dying, so I’m alright,” she said.
“I just feel back for letting the team down. I’m fine with myself, but you don’t want to let someone down in the process.”
Wide World of Sports commentator Sam Fricker said: “We’ve seen a slight mistake from Anabelle coming off the board. I’m not entirely sure what happened there.
“They’ve just missed out on a medal.”
Smith will also compete in the individual springboard event and said she cannot afford to dwell on the mistake.
Originally published as ‘Distraught’: Heartbreaking scene as Aussies fall to pieces
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