Manama, Under the patronage of His Highness Shaikh Nasser bin Hamad Al Khalifa, Representative of His Majesty for Humanitarian Works and Youth Affairs, and Chairman of the Supreme Council for Youth and Sports (SCYS), the opening ceremony of the High Diving World Championship will take place tomorrow, Friday, at Bahrain Harbour.
The event will be held on September 21-22 and is organised by the Bahrain Olympic Committee (BOC) in collaboration with the International Swimming Federation and the support of GFH Group.
BOC has arranged a special programme to mark the first hosting of this event in the Kingdom of Bahrain, near prominent landmarks in Manama and Bahrain Bay. A platform has been constructed on the bridge overlooking Bahrain Harbour for spectators to view the world’s best divers, with men diving from a height of 27 metres and women from 20 metres.
Invitations have been sent out for the opening ceremony, and an online portal has been opened for the public to reserve free tickets for the competitions o
n Saturday and Sunday.
Most of the participants, numbering between 36 and 40 divers, representing 16 countries, have already arrived. These include athletes from Australia, Brazil, Canada, Colombia, Denmark, France, Germany, the United Kingdom, Italy, Mexico, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Romania, Switzerland, Ukraine, and the United States.
The championship is a major qualifier for the 2025 World Aquatics Championships in Singapore. The competitions will be broadcast live on Bahrain Sports Channel and other GCC, Arab channels that have acquired the broadcasting rights.
According to the championship’s regulations, each diver will complete four dives two on Saturday and two on Sunday. The women’s events will take place first, followed by the men’s.
Notable female competitors include four-time world champion Rhiannan Iffland (32 years old) from Australia and Molly Carlson from Canada (25 years old), a two-time world silver medallist. Strong performances are also expected, Kaylea Arnett from the USA (31 year
s old), who finished fourth at the 2024 World Aquatics Championships in Doha, and Australia’s rising star, Xantheia Pennisi (24 years old), who placed sixth in the 2019 and 2023 championships and fifth in 2024.
Male competitors will include the World Champion Aidan Heslop (22 years old) from the United Kingdom, who will face off against Former World Champion Constantin Popovici (25 years old) from Romania. Heslop is known for his fast, dynamic diving, while Popovici is recognised for his precise and controlled style.
Source: Bahrain News Agency