Polignano a Mare 2018

3rd & 7 37yd

RHIANNAN IFFLAND WINS AND RETAINS WORLD SERIES TITLE!

by redbullcliffdiving 9/23/2018 11:42:06 AM
Rhiannan Iffland has one hand on the title, she just needs to land this final dive and she will be champion again.

by redbullcliffdiving 9/23/2018 11:38:38 AM
A solid final dive from Yana Nestsiarava, and now it all comes down to one final dive.

by redbullcliffdiving 9/23/2018 11:37:46 AM
Maybe the pressure and fatigue was just creeping in there, as the Mexican sends up a big splash upon entry. Just 7, 7, 6.5 for that one. That might just be the end of her brave title challenge.

by redbullcliffdiving 9/23/2018 11:36:04 AM
Three divers left in this final. Can Adriana Jimenez turn up the heat on Rhiannan Iffland?

by redbullcliffdiving 9/23/2018 11:33:38 AM
Very nice from the Canadian, and the judges flash three 8.5s to the mum-of-three.

by redbullcliffdiving 9/23/2018 11:32:48 AM
Here comes Lysanne Richard with a running take-off...

by redbullcliffdiving 9/23/2018 11:30:26 AM
Ginger Huber, the oldest diver in the World Series, earns a couple of 6s for her Inward 2 Somersaults 1/2 Twist.

by redbullcliffdiving 9/23/2018 11:29:40 AM
Low scores for Antonina Vyshyvanova, and we're half way through this final round now.

by redbullcliffdiving 9/23/2018 11:27:24 AM
Xantheia Pennisi picks up a 7 and a couple of 6.5s, and now Jessica Macaulay is up dancing on the platform. Great energy from the Brit, and she rounds off her brilliant season as wildcard with 7.5, 7.5, 8. She's into the lead for now.

by redbullcliffdiving 9/23/2018 11:24:39 AM
Jaki Valente won't repeat her podium finish from this location last year. The Brazilian can only earn 6, 6, 5.5 from the judges.

by redbullcliffdiving 9/23/2018 11:21:04 AM
Maria Paula Quintero opens up the final round with three 6.5s for her Inward 3 Somersaults 1/2 Twist.

by redbullcliffdiving 9/23/2018 11:19:39 AM
One more dive left for the men and women, and two titles will be decided in these final leaps of the season. Here we go with the women's final.

by redbullcliffdiving 9/23/2018 11:16:24 AM
70,000 spectators have packed onto every vantage point here to enjoy this final showdown.

by redbullcliffdiving 9/23/2018 11:10:59 AM
by redbullcliffdiving via Instagram 9/23/2018 11:10:19 AM

Men's standings after round 3:

1-	Gary Hunt GBR	283.45pts
2-	Michal Navratil (CZE)	277.9
3-	Kris Kolanus POL	273.65
4-	Alessandro De Rose ITA	271.05
5-	Steven LoBue USA	270.9
6-	Andy Jones USA	264.35
7-	Jonathan Paredes MEX	257.4
8-	Blake Aldridge GBR	250.7
9-	Segio Guzman (W) MEX	235.7
10-	Constantin Popovici (W) ROU	234.8
11-	Oleksiy Prygorov (W) UKR	233.8
12-	Aidan Heslop (W) GBR	229.5
13-	Owen Weymouth (W) GBR	203.6

by redbullcliffdiving 9/23/2018 11:08:03 AM

A couple of 6.5s and a 7 for the Mexican, and that's not going to be good enough to keep him in the fight. This looks like a straight shootout between Hunt and Lobue in the final now.

by redbullcliffdiving 9/23/2018 11:06:06 AM
Some great diving going on here. Kris Kolanus, Andy Jones and Michal Navratil are in the water for 8s and 8.5s. Hunt still holds onto his lead though, but here comes Jonathan Paredes with the final dive of the round.

by redbullcliffdiving 9/23/2018 11:03:30 AM
It's the dive of the day so far from Hunt as he rips the Adriatic to earn a couple of 9s from the judges. He fires into a 12 point lead at the top, and if he can stay there after one more dive he will make it title number 7.

by redbullcliffdiving 9/23/2018 10:58:35 AM
Gary Hunt has been the comeback kid during the last few stops with three wins in a row. Will he continue his strong form here?

by redbullcliffdiving 9/23/2018 10:56:35 AM
That's just what the American needed, three 8.5s move him into second place just a point behind De Rose.

by redbullcliffdiving 9/23/2018 10:54:33 AM
7s for Blake Aldridge, and next up is title contender Steven LoBue. This needs to be good if he wants to stay in the fight.

by redbullcliffdiving 9/23/2018 10:52:03 AM
And it's brilliant from De Rose. Three 8.5s thrust him into a healthy lead. Could he repeat his sensational victory here from last year?

by redbullcliffdiving 9/23/2018 10:49:00 AM
The crowd are going wild and that can only mean one thing, homegrown here Alessandro De Rose is next up on the platform. The Italian is up onto his hands and away he goes...

by redbullcliffdiving 9/23/2018 10:47:24 AM
Constantin Popovici has been an exciting new addition at the last few stops, and the Romanian moves into the lead with a solid dive. Not so good for Owen Weymouth though, who collects 5.5s.

by redbullcliffdiving 9/23/2018 10:46:24 AM
A piece of World Series history this weekend as 16-year-old Brit Aidan Heslop makes his debut and becomes the youngest diver in the sport's history. And what a dive too, 8, 8.5, 8.5 from the judges. This boy is going to be some cliff diver in the future.

by redbullcliffdiving 9/23/2018 10:40:52 AM
The attention moves 6m north to the men's 27m platform now. Oleksiy Prygorov gets things underway in the 3rd round with three 6s.

by redbullcliffdiving 9/23/2018 10:36:52 AM

Women's standings after Round 3 -

1-	Rhiannan Iffland AUS	239.65pts
2-	Yana Nestsiarava BLR	208.9
3-	Adriana Jimenez MEX	196.6
4-	Lysanne Richard CAN	194.9
5-	Ginger Huber USA	183.7
6-	Antonina Vyshyvanova (W) UKR	183
7-	Jessica Macaulay (W) GBR	179
8-	Xantheia Pennisi (W) AUS	174.1
9-	Jaki Valente (W) BRA	172.5
10-	Maria Paula Quintero (W) COL	155.5

by redbullcliffdiving 9/23/2018 10:32:29 AM

Rhiannan Iffland looks in very good shape to make it three World Series titles in a row. She has just ripped the Adriatic for 8, 8, 8.5 and extends her lead at the top to 31 points. Crucially though, she is now 43 points ahead of Jimenez with one dive to go.

by redbullcliffdiving 9/23/2018 10:29:05 AM
Not great from the Mexican. There was a lot of splash there and the judges can go no higher than 7.

by redbullcliffdiving 9/23/2018 10:26:52 AM
Now, this is where things get interesting. Adriana Jimenez, current World Series leader, has a great chance to win the title today. This needs to be good though to put the pressure on Rhiannan Iffland.

by redbullcliffdiving 9/23/2018 10:24:23 AM
Yana Nestsiarava nails her dive, and the judges flash a couple of 8.5s for that. Very nice from the Belarusian.

by redbullcliffdiving 9/23/2018 10:22:30 AM
Lysanne Richard steps up to the 21m platform. Can she still have a say in this title fight? Not great scores for the Canadian - 7, 7.5, 6.5. It's enough to move into the lead for now.

by redbullcliffdiving 9/23/2018 10:20:48 AM
Medium scores for Jessica Macaulay, 7, 7, 7.5 from the judges. The Brit is up into second place though.

by redbullcliffdiving 9/23/2018 10:17:26 AM
Three divers down already in this women's 3rd round. 6s for Maria Paula Quintero, 8s for Xantheia Pennisi, then Ginger Huber throws a cracker for 9s.

by redbullcliffdiving 9/23/2018 10:13:22 AM
Just 10 minutes until the women kick-off their third round. The crowds and the excitement are building nicely beneath the clear blue skies here.

by redbullcliffdiving 9/23/2018 10:03:11 AM
Gary Hunt
The eagles were circling, and the news was spreading that Gary Hunt, the great and powerful, was finished. After a failed final dive lost him the title in Chile last year, the Brit lost faith in his famous twisting powers and opened his account this season with 8th and 10th place finishes in Texas and Bilbao. But it seems rumours of Hunt's demise were greatly exaggerated, and after a tentative return to twisting earned him a first podium in Azores, the 34-year-old rediscovered the magic that has brought him six World Series titles to reel off three wins in a row. That stunning return to form has thrust him into a 20 point lead at the top and means that another win here, or even just staying ahead of LoBue and Paredes, will earn him title number 7.

by redbullcliffdiving 9/23/2018 9:59:51 AM
Steven LoBue
A first win since 2015, a second straight after it, two 10s, a record-high score for a single dive...it's been a monumental season for the 33-year-old American. If it hadn't been for the sensational comeback of a certain rival, the 'spinmaster' would as good as have the title wrapped up by now. Even still, sitting in second place 20 points off the lead with one stop to go is something even he would have hardly believed after finishing 2017 in 7th place. It's already LoBue's most successful season ever, and if he can pull one more victory out of the bag, he'll be taking the men's King Kahekii trophy back to the USA for the first time.

by redbullcliffdiving 9/23/2018 9:56:47 AM
Jonathan Paredes
It's been a patchy season for the reigning champion, whose three podium finishes have been dampened by a 10th and 6th place. That's not to say he has gone backwards this year; in fact his points tally in those three podium finishes would have been enough to score three victories last season. The problem is, when the Mexican has found his form in 2018, he has unfortunately ran into the juggernauts Hunt and LoBue, who have been smashing records left, right and centre. Paredes needs to win in Italy and hope those two fail badly, but any doubters need only look back at last year's finale to know that anything can happen.

by redbullcliffdiving 9/23/2018 9:55:37 AM
Adriana Jimenez
The Mexican is enjoying her best season to date, and with two wins and a second place to her name this year she has been the epitome of consistency. Now into her fifth season on the World Series, it seems the 33-year-old is getting better with age. Having scored her maiden victory last season, but ultimately seeing rival Iffland surge to a second title, Jimenez knew she needed to step things up in 2018. She has certainly done that, even posting the highest ever women's total score in Mostar, and a 20 point lead in the standings means that another win here will seal the deal and earn her a first title.

by redbullcliffdiving 9/23/2018 9:54:00 AM
Rhiannan Iffland
The two-time World Series champion began the season as favourite to make it a hat-trick of titles and become the most decorated female in the sport's history, but just one victory in the four women's stops so far means she now has a fight on her hands at the finale. For the first time in her career she has gone two events without victory, although second place in each of those stops is hardly a sign that the Aussie has lost her powers. A repeat of her victory here last season would see the 27-year-old raising the King Kahekili trophy for the third year in a row.

by redbullcliffdiving 9/23/2018 9:53:27 AM
Lysanne Richard
The 37-year-old Canadian endured a nightmare 12 months in 2017 after a neck injury ruled her out for the whole season, but has bounced back in style this year. She opened with a fifth-place finish in Texas, improved in Azores to take her first podium of the season, before completing a sensational return to form with victory in Sisikon. Missing out on the podium at the last stop in Mostar by just four points means the path to the top is now very difficult - she must win in Italy and hope Jimenez and Iffland finish low.

by redbullcliffdiving 9/23/2018 9:49:26 AM
It's tight at the top, with three men and three women still fighting for the title as the season enters its final dives in this stunning location on the Adriatic coast. Here's a little recap of the contenders.

by redbullcliffdiving 9/23/2018 9:48:34 AM
So, after Saturday's first two rounds it's the reigning world champions Jonathan Paredes and Rhiannan Iffland who lead the way. Read the full story from the first rounds here.

by redbullcliffdiving 9/23/2018 9:42:29 AM
This is it, the grande finale of the 2018 season in beautiful Polignano a Mare in Italy. After six thrilling stops it all comes down to the final dives to decide who will take home the King Kahekili Trophy. Three men and three women are all in with a chance, so stay tuned right here for the latest updates and live action.

by redbullcliffdiving 9/22/2018 4:54:34 PM

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Polignano a Mare 2018

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