THE CANADIAN PRESS
MONTREAL — Alexandre Despatie and Arturo Miranda were given conditional spots on the Canadian Olympic diving team Tuesday without having to compete in this month’s national trials.
The decision was made to allow Despatie, from Laval, Que., to fully recover from a fractured right foot in time for the Beijing Games. The rest of the team will be decided at the June 20-22 trials in Victoria.
"Officials with Diving Canada had already told me not to worry," Despatie said following a training session in Montreal. "But I have to admit I am relieved to hear the decision is official."
Despatie, who fractured his foot last April, is slated to compete in the men’s three-metre event and in the three-metre synchro with Miranda, of Montreal, at the Aug. 8-24 Games.
"We must, first and foremost, ensure (Despatie) is fit and ready for the Games rather than risking his health by forcing him to compete prematurely in the trials," Mitch Geller, Diving Canada’s chief technical officer, said in a statement. "The team of Alex and Arturo Miranda is a proven medal contender and the same rationale applies."
To confirm his Olympic status, Despatie will need a note from his doctor by July 9 confirming that his injury has healed and that there was minimal chance of a recurrence. He’ll also need to prove himself before three FINA judges at a simulated competition prior to the same deadline.
Should he fail to meet either condition, the diver named as an alternate for the three-metre event at the trials will replace him in Beijing, while Reuben Ross of Regina and Eric Sehn of Edmonton will replace Despatie and Miranda in the synchro competition.
Despatie, who began diving again last week, doesn’t expect that to be an issue.
"I’m feeling better each day and I’m doing a little bit more in training," he said. "I won’t have any trouble meeting the conditions."
The 22-year-old diver claims he is ahead of the schedule he set for himself after fracturing his foot during a training session.
"I have a little more than two months of preparation ahead of the games and I said that with two months of intensive training I would be able to regain my form for competition," Despatie said.
But he also admitted that while the healing process is going well, he’s still not quite 100 per cent.
"I’d be lying if I said I didn’t feel any pain," he said. "The bone in my foot is completely healed. But as my foot has been out of action for seven weeks, I have to strengthen the atrophied muscles."
Canada has two spots for the men’s three-metre event and one spot for the men’s three-metre synchro at the Olympics. Final nominations must be submitted to the Canadian Olympic Committee by July 13, with changes possible until July 21.
