Reuben Ross Finishes Third at World Diving Championships

July 18, 2009

Complete Results in PDF Format

Rome, Italy – University of Miami diver Reuben Ross finished third in the men’s synchronized 3-meter competition on Saturday competing at the 2009 FINA World Championships in Rome. Meanwhile, fellow UM diver Brittany Viola finished 18th in the women’s 10-meter platform in Saturday’s semifinals action.

Ross, a native of Regina, Saskatchewan, teamed with Alexandre Despatie for just the second time ever, as the two dove for their home country of Canada. Despatie, hailing from Laval, Quebec, and Ross set a meet-record score en route to the gold medal in their competitive debut on three-meter springboard at the Summer Nationals diving competition last month in Quebec City.

This time around, Ross and Despatie would finish third on a grander scale, posting a score of 428.24 in this year’s FINA World Championships. Troy Dumais and Kristian Ipsen scored 445.59 points for the United States, finishing second only to China’s Wang Feng and Qin Kai–the 2008 Olympic gold medalists who finished with 467.94 points.

UM junior Brittany Viola, serving as team captain for the U.S. on the women’s side, was unable to advance to Saturday night’s finals on the platform, finishing 18th, respectively, while teammate Haley Ishimatsu (Seal Beach, Calif.) placed 17th. Mexico’s Paola Espinosa scored 428.25 for the gold in the finals, with Beijing gold medalist Chen Ruolin of China winning silver at 417.60.

On Sunday, Viola and fellow U.S. teammate Christina Loukas (Riverwoods, Ill.) will compete in women’s 1-meter and Ishimatsu and Mary Beth Dunnichay (Elwood, Ind.) dive 10-meter synchro. The diving events run through July 25.

Viola is a two-time defending 1-m diving champion out of the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC).

Featuring America’s best divers, USA Diving is the national governing body for the sport of diving. Headquartered in Indianapolis, USA Diving offers diversified programs geared toward the broadest number of diving enthusiasts, from the novice to the world champion. USA Diving conducts approximately 40 regional and national events annually and is responsible for training and selecting teams that represent the United States at international events such as the Olympic Games, World Championships and World Cup. For more information, visit www.usadiving.org.