Reid rounds out Team GB diving medal haul with bronze

29 Jun 2023

Grace Reid finished the European Games just as she began it - on the podium - as she secured Team GB's seventh and final diving medal at the Rzeszow Arena with bronze in the Women's 1m Springboard. 

The two-time World Championship medallist had got Britain's divers on the medal board with Mixed 3m Synchro silver, alongside James Heatly, on Friday. 

Five days later, Grace was back in the top three after a composed display in the individual 1m finale, thanks in part to a clutch closer in round five.

After a solid opening pair of dives, it was her third-round Forward 1 1/2 Somersaults 2 Twists Free (5134D) that stepped up the difficulty and put her into medal contention - and she subsequently then sat fourth in the standings after four dives. 

Requiring a strong finish, Reid duly delivered, nailing her Forward 2 1/2 Somersaults Pike (105B) to score a round-high 58.50 and jump into the bronze-medal position at the perfect time. 

"It's been a really long week, there's been a lot of competition so I'm really pleased to be at the end of competition and to finish with that result, I'm really happy," she said.

"I think a few days of recovery is probably needed for everyone, but I have plans to be back in training on Monday - we can't stop and sit still as we're athletes so we'll be back training in no time!

"It's 100 per cent a nice way to finish with a medal. I think all three of us on the podium are happy, that's the lasting memory of these Games for us."

Grace Reid pike dive 1m Springboard

There was so nearly one final medal to add to British Diving's eye-catching total in Poland as Ross Haslam and James Heatly teamed up in the Men's 3m Synchro final to round out the diving programme.

The pairing won silver together in this event at the inaugural European Games in 2015, and they looked set for a repeat medal performance after a consistent string of dives through the rounds, two solid requireds followed by a round-high tally of 75.60 for their Reverse 1 1/2 Somersaults 3 1/2 Twists Free (5337D). 

Scores of 74.46 and 76.65 saw them sitting second heading into the final round, and with a glimmer of gold still remaining. Unfortunately, a restarted dive in round five - a rare sight in synchro competition - saw them docked two points from each judge's score. They nailed the execution and entry on their Forward 4 1/2 Somersaults Tuck (109C - a 3.8 DD dive) but scored only 69.54 because of the deductions, a total that saw them finish fourth, an agonising 1.5 points off the podium. 

Overall, Team GB's divers closed the 2023 European Games with seven medals to their names, including three golds. They were for Eden Cheng in the Women's 10m Platform (a result that also secured Britain an Olympic quota spot in that event for Paris 2024), Desharne Bent-Ashmeil and Amy Rollinson in the Women's 3m Synchro and Haslam in the Men's 1m Springboard.

For full results from the full diving programme, visit the European Games website.