PETALING JAYA: A stern test awaits as Chew Yiwei (pic)-Ooi Tze Liang make their return on the world stage in Budapest.
After more than a year out of the pool, Yiwei-Tze Liang will be the first of the Malaysian divers to see action in the men’s 3m springboard synchro event in the World Aquatics Championships today.
Also competing later in the day is two-time Olympic medallist Pandelela Rinong and Nur Dhabitah Sabri in the women’s individual 10m platform preliminaries.
The World Cup in May last year was the last elite level competition for Yiwei-Tze Liang.
And despite the absence of their rivals from China, the pair only managed a seventh placing and missed out on the Tokyo Olympics.
The duo did return to competition in the Vietnam SEA Games in May to retain the gold for Malaysia but the event was competed by just two countries.
With the world meet serving as an important warm-up for the divers ahead of the Birmingham Commonwealth Games from July 28-Aug 8, Yiwei is hoping for a consistent and commendable showing.
“To get the chance to qualify and compete against the world’s top divers is the main motivation that keeps me going in training.
“It’s definitely been a while since we’ve been on the world stage. The World Championships is without doubt a different level of competition compared to the SEA Games.
“I believe we are still the best option for Malaysia right now and we are definitely looking forward to put up our best.
“Even though this is our first real international competition in a long time, we have not slackened off and I believe we will put up a stronger showing than the SEA Games.
“We have been learning new techniques that will be essential for us in our chances in Birmingham. so I am definitely hoping that we can execute our dives well in Budapest,” added Yiwei.
Yiwei-Tze Liang, who are competing in their third world meet together, are among the more experienced divers in the mix.
They have made the finals twice in the 2017 and 2019 editions, finishing 10th and 12th respectively.
More importantly, they will want to measure up against their Commonwealth Games opponents, especially Britain’s Jack Laugher-Anthony Harding.
China’s reigning Olympic gold medallists Cao Yuan-Wang Zongyuan will be the pair to beat in Budapest although there will be stiff competition from Britain, Germany and Mexico to get onto the podium.
