Gullstrand Advances to 3M Semifinals in Tokyo

TOKYO — University of Miami freshman diver and Sweden native Emma Gullstrand proved she was up to the task in her Olympic debut on Friday, advancing to the semifinals of the 3-meter springboard at the Tokyo Aquatics Center.

Gullstrand, who enjoyed a tremendous debut season despite arriving to The U for the spring semester, continued her magical stretch by finishing in 12th with a score of 289.65 to earn one of 18 coveted spots in Saturday’s semifinals.

Gullstrand, who earned NCAA All-America honors this past spring, became Sweden’s first medal winner in nine years when she won a bronze at the most recent European Championships. The performance helped clinch her debut in the Olympics, where she shined in representing her native Sweden on Friday.

Gullstrand’s top scoring dive of the night was a backward, two-and-one-half somersault pike, which netted her a score of 64.50 on her third dive. She opened her Olympics with a inward two-and-one-half somersault pike for 63.00 points.

The semifinals of the 3-meter springboard are set for Saturday at 2 a.m. ET.