Germany and Ukraine will seek to maintain their domination of the European Aquatics Junior Diving Championships when the latest edition starts in Athens tomorrow (June 23), concluding on June 29.
At last year’s edition in Rzeszow, Poland the Ukraine team finished top of the medals table with six golds, nine silvers and two bronzes.
Germany – with four golds, one silver, five bronzes – were second ahead of Italy, who earned three golds, four silvers and two bronzes, and Great Britain, who secured two golds, three silvers and four bronzes.
For Ukraine, Kseniia Bochek and Diana Karnafel will contest the 3m synchro event in which they became world junior champions last year and senior European champions in Antalya last month.
Karnafel will also defend the 1m springboard title she won in Rzeszow, while Bochek is listed for both the 1m and 3m events.
Germany’s selection of 17 divers, the largest in the competition, includes Finn Awe, who won world junior gold in the Boys’ 1m and 3m Springboard (14-15) events last year.
Awe, who will turn 16 on June 29, the last day of the competition, is set to resume his rivalry in the 3m springboard with Ukraine’s respective silver and bronze medallists, Valerii Malieiev and Dmytro Stepanov.
Among Awe’s team-mates will be 17-year-old Ole Rosler, whose debut appearance at last month’s EA Diving Championships in Antalya saw him earn silver in the 10m platform, 10m platform synchro and team even.
Britain’s selection includes Noah Penman, who earned senior European silver in the 3m springboard.
Simone Conte, who earned a senior European bronze with Riccardo Giovannini in the 10m platform synchro, is in a strong Italian line-up. At last year’s World Aquatics Junior Championships he showed his talent and versatility as he earned gold in he Boys 10m Platform (16-18) and Boys 10m Synchro (14-18), also taking a silver medal in the Boys 3m Synchro (16-18).
Conte’s partner in the 10m synchro, Raffaele Pelligra, is also selected, as is Giorgia de Sanctis, who earned silver last year in the Girls 3m synchro.
Mike Rowbottom for European Aquatics
