COLOMBO: (ePRESS) – Mikhail Jayaweera of Colombo International School (CIS) achieved an impressive feat by winning the 1m Springboard, 3m Springboard, and Platform events at the 48th National Age Group Diving Championship, organized by Sri Lanka Aquatic Sports Union (SLASU), which was held at the Sugathadasa Stadium Swimming Pool on June 28 and 29, saw Mikhail earn the honor of representing Sri Lanka at the World Aquatics Junior Diving Championship in Rio, Brazil, from November 24 to December 1, 2024.
Competing as the sole diver from his school, Mikhail’s outstanding performances propelled CIS to the runners-up position in the championship, just behind the champions, Royal College. The rankings were determined based on the scores allocated to schools for the top three places in different events.
The two-day event served as a selection trial for two international competitions. Mikhail surpassed the qualifying standard of 304 points by scoring 311 in the platform event, thus securing his place in the World Aquatics Junior Diving Championship in Rio.
Securing first place in the Boys Group B for the 1m Springboard, 3m Springboard, and platform events, Mikhail not only excelled in his age group but also emerged as the top scorer of the age group championship, including Group ‘A’, ‘B’, and Open age categories. His dominance in diving has been evident since the beginning of his career.
Competing in the Group ‘B’ category, Mikhail won the gold medal in the Men’s 1m Springboard event with a score of 287.80 points. Although he narrowly missed the World Aquatics Junior Diving Championship standard of 293 points, his performance was commendable. His cousin, Ruel Wickramaratne of Royal College, won the silver with 253.55 points, and Daham Marambe, also of Royal College, took the bronze with 223.70 points.
In the Men’s 3m Springboard event, Mikhail achieved a massive score of 334.80 points, securing another gold medal.
The scores for dives are a combination of the scores from judges and the contribution of a DD (Degree of Difficulty) factor assigned to each dive. The winner is the diver with the most points from all dives per event. Mikhail consistently competes in high DD dives, enabling him to obtain higher marks and meet the standards for selection in international competitions.
Mikhail Jayaweera, 15, has been dominating the sport over the last few years, winning medals in both national and international competitions. He has already represented Sri Lanka in competitions in Thailand, Hong Kong, the Philippines, and India. In the last 12 months, Mikhail represented Sri Lanka at the 11th Asian Age Group Diving Championship in the Philippines in December last year and the BIMSTEC Aquatic Championship in India earlier this year.
Champions are not made alone, and Mikhail is no exception. He has been training under the watchful eyes of Chanaka Wickramasinghe, who is regarded as one of the best in the business, having accomplished many recognitions in diving himself. The governing body of Diving – SLASU supports the sport by providing opportunities to compete and numerous other ways, ensuring that diving will continue to grow in the years to come.
