Australian wins penultimate stop as Briton Heslop powers to fourth 2024 win to boost own title chances.
Australian Rhiannan Iffland extended her reign at the top of the women’s Red Bull Cliff Diving World Series on Sunday, securing victory at the penultimate stop in Antalya to claim her eighth King Kahekili trophy in a row as Great Britain’s Aidan Heslop powered to his fourth 2024 win to pull away from his title rivals ahead of the Sydney finale in November.
Here is all you need to know:
- Victory number five of 2024 – her 40th in a stellar career – saw Iffland hold off the spirited challenge of Canada’s Molly Carlson for the third year running, ensuring it will be a triumphant homecoming at Sydney in six weeks’ time.
- The Australian led from start to finish on the Mediterranean coast, also picking up an extra championship point for executing the best
dive of the weekend – a near-perfect Reverse Flying 1 Somersault Tuck in Friday’s first round directly off the cliff face. - “It’s been a long season, a tough season and I’ve been training really hard and putting a lot of work in behind the scenes. To see it all pay off is quite an emotional thing,” said the tearful 33-year-old following her victory.
- “Yesterday I didn’t have any idea that I could actually take out the title, but somebody told me and since then it’s been ticking over. I knew that I needed to put down a solid dive today and I was a lot more nervous than usual, but we did it. I can’t wait to put on a good show in front of my friends and family, everyone will be there cheering me on.”
- Carlson, who needed to follow up her recent Montreal victory with another win in Türkiye to extend the title fight to the final stop, finished 43 points behind Iffland in second place, while compatriot Simone Leathead took third spot to claim her second podium of the season.
- The promising 21-year-old moves up into fourth place overall, two points behind American Kaylea Arnett, who finished fifth here.
- In the men’s competition, Heslop tightened his grip on top spot with an equally dominant performance, finishing almost 40 points ahead of runnerup Oleksiy Prygorov (UKR) to celebrate his fourth win of the season.
- With his two title rivals – James Lichtenstein of the USA and Romania’s Constantin Popovici – both faltering with fifth and sixth place finishes respectively, the Brit now takes a commanding 16-point overall lead into the season finale.
- “I’m feeling good. It was just an incredible event here today. I mean, the crowd, the sun, the location, it all just worked out. And to stand on top of the podium here today is going to be a real honour. I really thought James and Costa were going to add some real pressure today. I know they can do those dives for nines but they didn’t quite hit them,” said the 22-year-old Brit, who drilled down a huge Forward 4 Somersaults 3½ Twists Pike of his own in the final round.
- He added: “16 points ahead, that’s a nice lead at the minute. Why fix it when nothing’s broken, I’ll be doing the same thing that I just did hopefully and standing on top of that podium and taking that trophy at the end of the year.”
- Meanwhile, Italy’s Andrea Barnaba completed the men’s podium thanks to an exceptional display from the 27m platform, for which he earned three 10.0 scores from the judges over the weekend.
- Two of those top notes were awarded for his exquisite third round dive – a Back 3 Somersaults 2 Twists Pike – which earned the 20-year-old rising star an extra championship point for the best dive of the competition.
- Heslop, whose commanding lead means he has one hand firmly on the King Kahekili trophy, is on the cusp of fulfilling a dream which many in the cliff diving world predicted when he first burst onto the scene as a teenage prodigy.
- A thrilling three-way title fight many now have become a procession, but Lichtenstein and Popovici still carry a mathematical chance into the final stop.
- The divers will now enjoy a six-week break before heading to Australia for the grand finale of a long and gruelling season on November 10.
- There, the two champions will be crowned and the battle for permanent places on the 2025 tour will be settled in front of thousands of fans.
Red Bull Cliff Diving World Series 2024, Stop 7: Antalya
Women’s result
- Rhiannan Iffland AUS 367.10 points
- Molly Carlson CAN 324.75
- Simone Leathead CAN 305.20
Women’s standings (after 7 of 8 events)- Rhiannan Iffland AUS 136 points CHAMPION
- Molly Carlson CAN 112
- Kaylea Arnett (W) USA 54
- Men’s result
- Aidan Heslop GBR 436.80 points
- Oleksiy Prygorov UKR 397.20
- Andrea Barnaba (W) ITA 395.20
- Men’s standings (after 7 of 8 events)
- Aidan Heslop GBR 113 points
- James Lichtenstein USA 97
- Constantin Popovici ROU 94
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