Astonishing Bronze Medal for Nathan Zsombor-Murray and Rylan Wiens
Montréal, July 29, 2024 – Nathan Zsombor-Murray and Rylan Wiens kicked off the Olympic diving events by writing a new chapter in Canadian diving history! Bronze medallists in the men’s 10-metre synchronized event on Monday, the Canadian duo won not only Canada’s first-ever Olympic medal in this event, but also the first men’s diving medal since Alexandre Despatie was decorated at the Beijing Olympics in 2008.
“There are no words for me to describe how proud I feel. This is what we had envisioned back in 2022 in Budapest [at the World Championships], when we made history by winning a bronze medal in the 10-metre synchronized event,” said Montrealer Zsombor-Murray, who was visibly thrilled after the competition.
“When I saw the Mexican team’s result, I just jumped into Nathan’s arms. I couldn’t believe we got to experience that together. It was magical. I’m so glad to be able to experience this with my coach, my teammates, and my whole family, who are all here,” added Wiens.
Today’s competition at the Centre Aquatique de Paris was tight for the two Canadians, who won the silver medal in the same event at the Pan-American Games in Santiago last October.
After two rounds, they were in provisional second place; however, they were overtaken by the British team in the third.
“We placed our trust in each other. The fourth dive went a bit better for me, and the fifth went better for him. We kept pretty calm, but stayed nervous enough to keep our energy levels up,” explained Zsombor-Murray.
Having remained in the top three throughout the final rounds, the Canadian duo, who finished with a score of 422.13 points, kept the pressure on Kevin Berlin Reyes and Randal Williars Valdez of Mexico, who finished the day at the base of the podium, only four points behind the Canadians.
“I knew how the Mexicans had done, as well as the Ukrainians, so I had a pretty good idea of where we stood, and I knew it was close. I knew they needed 89 points on their final dive, but they only scored 85,” he added.
Reigning two-time world champions Lian Junjie and Yan Hao of China came out well ahead, clinching gold with 490.35 points. Thomas Daley and Noah Williams of Great Britain finished second with 463.44.
“When I saw that we had won [bronze], I started jumping up and down. I couldn’t control my emotions. We had been dreaming of this for so long. It’s the incredible result of 16 years of diving.”
The Canadian diving team will be back in action on Wednesday for the women’s 10-metre synchronized event, where Caeli McKay and Kate Miller will attempt to follow in their teammates’ footsteps by winning another medal for Canada.
