BEIJING — Michael Phelps isn’t the only athlete in the pool trying for a sweep of eight gold medals. The only difference is he’s not doing it in his home country, where his sport is on the front page, not the back.
He’s not doing it with the press following his every move, where even details of his love life are fair game.
He doesn’t have 1.3 billion people counting from one to eight.
In China, the divers do. Every Olympian competing at home feels pressure, but Chinese divers are different. This is a culture that has always revered artistry, and as it emerges as an economic and sports giant in the 21st century, merging artistry and the mechanics of diving has become their perfect yin and yang.
And no country has dominated Olympic diving like the Chinese.
Since 1988, going into the men’s synchronized 10-meter platform today, China has won 21 of 30 diving gold medals. The U.S. is next with four. No. 21 came here Sunday when Guo Jingjing, China’s Tiger Woods of diving, combined with Wu Minxia to win the women’s synchronized springboard competition.
The crowd’s enthusiasm was, as one Chinese journalist observed, “like the NBA with Michael Jordan.” They nearly filled the 17,000-seat National Aquatics Center, a.k.a. the Water Cube, except for a small strip at the far end of the swimming pool, a good 400 feet away, and some seats blocked by the platform dive.
Like Phelps, for China, it’s one down and seven to go.
“Everyone expects them to sweep all eight gold medals,” said Zhou Xin, a Beijing native who covers swimming and diving for China’s Xinhua news service.
No kidding. Keep in mind that Guo and Wu totaled 343.50 points to runner-up Russia’s 323.61. It was pretty much over after the third of five dives, and they won the gold by the football equivalent of about 35-7. Yet the second question from a Chinese reporter in the news conference was, “Do you think you performed your fifth dive as well as you should have?”
Even Wu shook her head and laughed.
The pressure on the Chinese here is palpable. Some handle it; some crack. In Saturday’s 10-meter air rifle competition, defending Olympic champion Du Li collapsed in the final round and finished fifth.
“The Chinese are beatable,” U.S. diver Troy Dumais said. “It doesn’t matter what event — women’s or men’s — they’re definitely beatable. They’ve got to know that going in, and that adds extra stress as well. It will be an interesting show. They won’t be in the middle of the line.
“They’ll be either hot or off.”
The divers knew this was coming. Immediately after the Athens Olympics four years ago, they began using a sports psychologist. One of the drills to relieve pressure was to give a speech in front of their parents and sports officials.
If mankind’s biggest fear is public speaking, the Chinese feel, then diving in front of countrymen who love them shouldn’t be a problem.
No Chinese diver — and maybe no Chinese athlete in the Olympics — is under more pressure than the 26-year-old Guo. She’s the ultimate China doll. She won gold medals in the springboard and synchronized events in Athens and won four consecutive springboard gold medals in the World Championships.
One more gold and she’ll be the most decorated diver in history. Nothing seems to faze her. She’s retiring after these Games, yet she never smiled during the competition, or even hugged or high-fived Wu after it.
“There will be pressure,” Guo said. “The only thing I can do is overcome the pressure and hope the pressure can be a motivation.”
With 1.3 billion people to motivate, they can’t lose. Or can they?
John Henderson: 303-954-1299 or jhenderson@denverpost.com
