SOUTHAMPTON Diving Academy sent a 13-strong team to Berlin for their annual event against the German club.

On the first day of competition the girls took to the platform and the boys the 3m springboard. Maddie Angell executed an excellent set of dives, scoring mainly 7’s & 7.5’s to achieve a personal best score and win the gold in the girls 14/15 years. Lucy Hawkins finished fourth. In the girls 16+ age group, Mollie James impressed the judges with her back dive pike from the 7.5m board, achieving 8’s and helping her to win silver.

In the youngest age group of 12/13 years, Tanya Watson took silver and Emily Martin bronze.

In the boys 3m springboard event, Lewys Oakley, 15, dived in the boys 16+ event. Lewys performed an impressive set of ten dives to finish third with a personal best score. In the boys 14/15 Years event, Max Cott won bronze while Thomas Graham and Scott Palmer were fourth and fifth respectively.

Brandon Foster and Robbie Brodie competed in the youngest age group of 12/13 years, finishing third and fourth respectively.

On the second day of competition, the divers swapped boards and the girls stepped up first to take to the 3m springboards.

In the girls 16+ years, Mollie James achieved a personal best score and a bronze, performing a fantastic reverse two and half somersaults tucked.

Maddie Angell, 14, performed a set of nine dives for the first time in competition and finished fourth, just behind James. Lucy Hawkins and Sophie Kinnard competed in the girls 14/15 years, finising third and fourth respectively. In the girls 12/13 years, Tanya Watson won bronze and Emily Martin was fourth.

The boys platform 12/13 years event was where SDA really excelled, Brandon Foster winning gold and William Osborne silver.

Both boys performed almost faultless handstand single somersault piked dives from the 7.5m board, Foster scoring 7.5’s and Osborne 8’s. Max Cott and Lewys Oakley won silver and bronze respectively in the Boys 14/15 Years Platform event.

Cott performed an impressive set of dives with many scores of 8’s.

Thomas Graham and Scott Palmer, 14, were third and fourth the boys 16+ years platform event.

This competition required the divers to meet the conditions of the ‘Fina Test’, so were required to include a twist dive from springboard and a handstand or twist from the platform. Senior coach Jack Clewlow said: “It was a pleasure to see the Southampton divers step up to the challenge and compete so well against some of the top divers in Europe.”