2025 Beijing Diving World Cup Finals Preview: A new competition system is unveiled, and Quan Hongchan hits the Grand Slam

30/04/2025 16:19:00 PANDATV

From May 2nd to 4th, Beijing time, the eyes of diving enthusiasts from all over the world will focus on the "Water Cube" of the Beijing National Aquatics Center, which will usher in this yearDiving World Cup FinalsThe ultimate showdown. As one of the highest-level individual events of the FINA World Federation, the Chinese team sent five players, including Quan Hongchan, Chen Yuxi, and Wang ZongyuanParis 2024The "Dream Team" led by the champion played.

Quan Hongchan

In the first two races, the Chinese team showed the dominance of the "gold medal harvester": Guadalajara, Mexico and Windsor, Canada15 gold, 7 silver, 2 bronze。 A total of nine medal competitions were set up in this competition, and the Chinese team fighting at home vowed to win all nine gold medals.

The innovative format of the finals has become the biggest highlight: the single event adopts a three-stage continuous elimination system, from the 1v1 preliminaries to the final of the zero rejump, the whole process will last about two hours, and the players need to complete the action under high pressure, and a single mistake may be eliminated. It is not only the physical and technical fitness of the athletes, but also the psychological ability to withstand stress.

Beijing Diving World Cup 2025 Finals: An introduction to the new format

In order to improve the spectacle of diving competitions and promote the development of the sport, FINA has been constantly innovating. Since the restructuring of the 2023 Diving World Cup, FINA will launch an exciting new format in the single event of the World Cup Finals in Los Angeles.

According to the rules, all players must participate in the first two races and be in the top 12 points in order to qualify for the Grand Final.

The finals of the single event are divided into three knockout stages. In the first stage of the preliminary round, players will face each other 1v1 according to the seed ranking, with the highest ranked player (1st) facing the lowest ranked player (12th), the 2nd place playing 11th, and so on. Each player can freely choose 3 diving actions according to the opponent's situation, and after 3 rounds, the player with the lower score in each group will be eliminated, and finally 6 players will advance to the semi-finals.

Chen Yuxi (middle) won the gold medal in the women's 10-meter platform at two consecutive World Cups, and Quan Hongchan won the silver medal at two consecutive World Cups.

In the semi-finals, 6 players will be divided into two groups of 3 each. Athletes must complete the movements that have not yet been completed in the diving list (3 for men and 2 for women), and the scores for the semi-finals will be cumulative, including the points scored in the preliminaries. The player with the lowest score in each group will be eliminated, and the remaining four will advance to the final.

In the finals, 4 players need to complete all the registration actions, 6 movements for men and 5 movements for women. The accumulated scores of the first two rounds will be cleared to zero, and the final will be recalculated.

It is worth mentioning that all three stages will be carried out consecutively, and the schedule will be compressed to about 2 hours, which will greatly test the tactics, physical fitness and pressure resistance of the players.

2025 Beijing Diving World Cup Finals: Star players to watch

This year's event not only brought together the Chinese "dream team" led by five Paris Olympic champions, including Quan Hongchan, Chen Yuxi and Wang Zongyuan, but also international top athletes such as British star Holden and Australian powerhouse Madison Kenny.

The "Dream Team" is ready to go, and Quan Hongchan will hit the Grand Slam

In the women's 10-meter platform event, the golden duo of Chinese players Chen Yuxi and Quan Hongchan won the gold medal in the pairs event at the 2024 Paris Olympic Games, and have remained undefeated in various FINA competitions for nearly four years, leading the strength gap.

At the same time, the matchup between the two in the individual event will undoubtedly be the biggest attraction once again. At the Olympics, Quan Hongchan defeated Chen Yuxi for two consecutive years to win the gold medal. However, in this season's World Cup, Chen Yuxi's overall performance was more stable, and he stood on the top podium in two consecutive races. Under the new competition system, Chen Yuxi, whose technology is more stable, aims for the championship.

Quan Hongchan has experienced height and weight gain, and is still in the adaptation period. After the Windsor station, Quan Hongchan said that she was getting better and better, and her performance in the game was even better than in training. As a contestant, Quan Hongchan is looking forward to ushering in an explosion.

What's more worth mentioning is that from 2023, the Diving World Cup will be changed to the mode of sub-station competition and finals, although Quan Hongchan has won the championship in the sub-station competition many times, but she has never reached the top in the finals. For Quan Hongchan, who has already won gold medals at the Olympics and the World Championships, winning the finals will be the last piece of the puzzle for her to complete the Grand Slam.

Chen Yuxi has been in great form this season

The veterans adjust their form, and the rookies come to the fore

In the women's 3-meter springboard field, Chang Yani/Chen Yiwen, as the Olympic champion combination, won the championship with an absolute advantage in the first two stops. Individual events, rookieChen JiaSuddenly, he defeated Olympic champion Chen Yiwen in two consecutive stops, injecting new vitality into the Chinese team.

Men's 3m Springboard,Wang ZongyuanAlthough he won the championship in Mexico with a dominant performance of 540.15 points, he exposed his lack of fitness in Windsor, Canada. Under the new competition system of the finals, can Wang Zongyuan overcome his physical fitness problems and return as the king?

As for the men's 10-meter platform, 19 years oldCheng Zilongand 22 years oldZhu ZifengThe new season has emerged, winning the gold medal in the double 10m platform in the first two World Cups of this year. However, in the individual event, the duo still needs to improve their consistency.

In the mixed team competition, the Chinese team is still sentChen Yiwen/Chen Yuxi/Wang Zongyuan/Cheng ZilongThe top combination of the first two stations won the championship with a huge advantage, and the goal of the finals is to win the gold medal.

Famous generals from all walks of life are eyeing each other

In the new season, the Chinese diving team is also facing a lot of challenges in individual events. Double 3m board combinationHu Yukang/Zheng JiuyuanHe will face his Mexican partnerHernandez/Ibarraand the British groupLovell/Hardingof powerful impacts.

Men's single 10m platform from MexicoRandal WillasVery explosive, winning the first World Cup title of his career in the first match at home, his strength should not be underestimated. Men's single 3m springboard, British starHoldenAfter winning the championship in Windsor, the confidence has increased and the strength to challenge for the top podium.

Can Quan Hongchan realize her dream of "Grand Slam" at home? Will the new format give rise to dark horses? All the answers will be revealed in the splash of the "Water Cube".