They make it look easy: crisp gymnastics through the air, knifing impact with the water and barely a splash upon entry. But diving is a grueling sport, requiring years of training from a young age. Some divers suffer from damage to their eyes, like detached retinas, from constant impact with the water. On Sunday, Shi Tingmao of China won gold in the 3-meter springboard event. Her teammate, Wang Han, took silver, underlining China’s dominance of this precision sport, in which perfection must be achieved in a couple seconds.

Source: New York Times August 01, 2021 09:44 UTC