Gibson of the US, 1st round of women’s 3m preliminary round, “I will instill positivity”, 4 more runs.
“Everyone has times when things don’t go well, but I hope you don’t give up and keep going. I wanted to show you what that looks like, so I continued the game.”
Allison Gibson (25, pictured), a member of the U.S. national diving team, literally received a “zero point” in the first round of the women’s 3m springboard preliminaries at the Paris Olympics on the 7th. There was no problem until she stood on the edge of the board with her back to the pool and jumped. However, the moment she did two backward turns in the air, her foot got caught on the board. Gibson’s body was still folded up until the moment she entered the water. The evaluation result was 0.0 points. She was the only zero point out of 28 athletes participating in this event.
The collision left Gibson with a bruise on her right elbow. She also had a cut on her side. Her chances of winning an Olympic medal were also in jeopardy. After her first round, Gibson shook her head and left the pool. However, after returning to the board, she dove into the water four more times. Her combined score for the fifth round was 198.30 points, again last place.
This is not the first time Gibson has finished last in the Olympics. Three years ago in Tokyo, Gibson announced her retirement after finishing last in the event. However, she returned to diving after sponsoring a Kenyan student through a non-profit organization. She hopes to show courage to other children who attend the same school.
“It was so painful (with the injury), but I didn’t want to give up. I wanted to be an example to other young athletes watching,” Gibson said with tears in her eyes after the competition. “I didn’t go to the Olympics just for diving. I hope that my actions today (of not giving up) will have a positive impact on many people.” 안전놀이터