Friday, July 9, 1999

MONTREAL (CP) -- Etienne Gauthier of Montreal set a national record with 554.55 points in winning the boys' 16-18 age group one-metre springboard event Friday at the Canadian junior diving championships.

Michael Gowdy of Victoria finished second with 524.10 points and Adam Morgan of Newfoundland was third with 490.41.

Blythe Hartley of Vancouver won the girls' 16-18 three-metre springboard. Hartley finished with 514.14 points, with Emilie Hermans of Montreal second at 492.21 and Megan Farrow of Edmonton third at 468.63.

In other events, Amie Buoy of Edmonton won the girls' 14-15 one-metre springboard, with Nadia Pelletier of Quebec second and Catherine Brunet of Montreal third.

Martin D'Amour of Laval, Que., won the boys' 12-13 platform event, with Jason Earthy of Victoria second and Ali Leblanc of Montreal third.

Melissa Lindenback of Regina won the 12-13 three-metre springboard, with Taryn Zack of Edmonton second and Emmanuelle Dupuis of Montreal third.

JOHN MEAGHER Montreal, July 8, 1999

For once, Alexandre Despatie will seem like a man among boys. The 14-year-old diving wunderkind from Laval is expected to tower above the competition at the Canadian Junior Diving Championships, which begin today and continue through Sunday at the Olympic Pool.

Despatie, the pint-sized platform specialist who vaulted to international stardom in 1998 with a gold-medal performance at the Commonwealth Games in Kuala Lumpur, is a heavy favourite to sweep the boys' 14-15 age group.

Heavy favourite is an oxymoron in this case, because Despatie stands 5-foot-2 and weighs only 125 pounds soaking weight.

A member of both Montreal's powerful CAMO club and the senior national team, Despatie is used to competing against much older, international-calibre divers.

Success came early for him. He captured his first senior national championship at age 13, and when he struck Commonwealth gold, he became the youngest winner in the history of the Games.

So this weekend's meet, in effect, is sort of like sending a bona fide NHL player back to junior for more seasoning.

"Well, I still have to do well," said Despatie, mature beyond his years. "But, yes, I should win this event if I dive the way I'm capable of."

In fact, Despatie has been beaten only once at this competition - he placed second to Kevin Geyson in the 1997 platform event for 12-13 boys - in three previous appearances. Last year, he swept his category, as he had in 1996.

If his past record-setting performances are an indication of his superiority at this level, Despatie could literally do at least one belly-flop and still towel himself off atop the medal podium. "If I dive as well as I'm capable of, I could clinch the gold before my final dive," he said.

Despatie, who enters Grade 9 classes next fall, is aiming for a spot at next summer's Olympic Games in Sydney, but said he'd like to retire from competitive diving after the 2004 Games. "I'd bey 19 by then, and that would be enough of diving 25 hours a week. I'd like to do other things in life. "

Other medal favourites competing this weekend are Emilie Heymans and Alida Di Placido of CAMO and Vancouver's Blythe Hartley.

They are among 218 athletes from 32 clubs divided into four age-group categories: 16-18, 14-15, 12-13 and 11-and-under

What awaits the winners is a far bigger prize than simple teenage bragging rites; the top two divers from each event, male and female, qualify for the world junior championships in the Czech Republic, Aug. 18-22. Diving fans can catch a glimpse of Despatie in action this morning (9 a.m.) in the one-metre springboard final. The three-metre final for 14-15 boys is scheduled for Saturday afternoon (1:50 p.m) and the platform final is set for Sunday at 11:10 a.m. Daily competition begins at 9 a.m.

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