Sam Fricker and Cassiel Rousseau will contest six dives in the preliminary round on Friday afternoon, aiming to earn themselves a spot in the top 18 and progress into the semi-final. The top 12 divers from the semi-final will then progress to the final medal round.  

Both athletes will compete for Australia’s first Olympic medal in the Men’s 10m platform event since Matthew Mitcham’s historic 2008 gold medal performance.  

19-year-old Sam Fricker will make his Olympic debut when he dives 17th in the field of 30. The NSW Institute of Sport scholarship holder has won a slew of medals at both the junior and international level, including bronze at the 2018 Junior World Championships in the Mixed Team event and silver at the 2019 Oceania Diving Championships on the 10m platform.   

Cassiel made his debut to the FINA diving circuit at 18-years-old, two years after transitioning to the sport from gymnastics in 2017. An impressive ninth place finish at the 2019 World Championships, which guaranteed Australia a spot at the Tokyo Games, proved he was one to watch in the sport. Cassiel will be the first diver off the platform in the men’s preliminary round.  

The Australian divers will face tough competition from China, who have claimed medals at every Olympic Games since Los Angeles 1984. Most notably, 2019 World Champion Jian Yang (CHN) will be amongst the men’s toughest competitors.  

The men’s 10m platform preliminary will begin at 4:00pm (AEST) on Friday August 6. Both the semi-final and final rounds will be held on Saturday August 7 at 11:00am (AEST) and 4:00pm (AEST) respectively. The top 18 divers from the preliminary will progress to the semi-final, with 12 moving through to the final medal round. 

Taylah O’Neill