Debutant Syafiq outshines illustrious compatriot Tze Liang
ONE was an experienced diver with Olympic experience while the other was just making his Commonwealth Games debut.
But it was debutant Muhd Syafiq Puteh who outshone the more experienced Ooi Tze Liang on the first day of the diving competition.
The 22-year-old Syafiq held his own against a world-class field as he finished fifth in the 1m springboard event at the Optus Aquatic Centre yesterday.
The Ipoh-born Syafiq, who qualified for the top-12 final with a score of 306.8, went one better as he finished with a personal best score of 378.90.
In contrast, Tze Liang – who won gold in the 3m springboard and silver in the 10m platform at the 2014 Glasgow Games – fared horribly.
The 24-year-old only managed a poor 319.0 to finish 11th.
A third Malaysian diver – Ahmad Amsyar Azman – finished sixth with a score of 369.40.
It was certainly an encouraging start for Syafiq, whose only major event appearance was the World Championships in Kazan in 2015.
“I’m quite satisfied with my performance in the final. It was an improvement from the preliminaries where I made some mistakes,” said Syafiq.
“In fact, this is the best I’ve ever done. This is the highest score I’ve ever gotten in this event.
“Now I’m feeling more motivated to put up another good showing in the 3m springboard synchro,” added Syafiq who will partner Gabriel Gilbert Daim.
Tze Liang on the other hand was critical of his performance.
“I made some mistakes on the third dive and I can’t really blame anyone but myself,” said Tze Liang.
“Now I just need to stay focused and calm for my next event,” added Tze Liang who will be up to defend his 3m springboard title today.
Meanwhile, defending champion Jack Laugher of England easily romped to the gold with a score of 438.0 while Aussie James Connor took the silver with 412.45. Scotland’s James Heatly was third with 399.25.