Chinese Shi Tingmao named FINA Diver of the Year for third time

World
Europe

Chinese diver Shi Tingmao was named Diver of the Year for the third consecutive year at the 2017 FINA World Aquatic Gala in Sanya, south China's Hainan Province.

The 26-year-old bagged home two gold medals for the three-meter individual and three-meter synchronized diving event at the FINA World Champions in Budapest earlier this year.

The name of the young Olympic champion is yet again inscribed in the hall of fame that has included Gao Min, Fu Mingxia, Guo Jingjing and Wu Minxia.

Shi Tingmao gestures during the women's 3m springboard synchronized final of diving at the 17th FINA World Championships in Budapest, Hungary, July 17, 2017. /Xinhua Photo

"I am flattered. For me, they are my idols and role models. I hope I can take over the baton from them and maintain the dominance. I am too young and too fresh to be compared to Gao, Fu and Guo and I did not get the chance to train or compete with them," Shi said in an interview with FINA after accepting the award.

"I feel very lucky to receive this award for the third time. I want to thank my coach and my family. I will work harder in the future."

Chinese players have dominated the Best Female Diver award for the past seven years, which went to Chen Ruolin (2010), Wu Minxia (2011-2012), He Zi (2013), Liu Huixia (2014), and Shi Tingmao (2015-2016).

The Best Male Diver was awarded to Thomas Daley from the UK.

Thomas Daley poses for a picture with the Best Male Diver trophy. /Photo via fina.org

Swimming legends Caeleb Dressel of the US and Sarah Sjostrom of Sweden claimed the Best Male/Female Swimmer titles respectively, while the Best Male/Female Water Polo Team went to Croatia/the US.

In artistic swimming, Russia's Svetlana Kolesnichenko snatched the top honor. Meanwhile, Italy's Giorgio Minisini and Russia's Aleksandr Maltsev shared the prize for the men's category.

Finally, Chinese state news agency Xinhua was awarded the FINA Media Award of the year.