DIVER Nur Dhabitah Sabri has qualified for next year’s Tokyo Olympic Games.
The 20-year-old achieved it by winning the women’s 3m springboard individual gold medal at the Asian Cup in Bukit Jalil yesterday.
Dhabitah, who topped the morning preliminaries on 295.85, posted a five-dive total of 313.85 points for the title, followed by compatriot Loh Zhiayi (223.45) and Indonesia’s Linadini Yasmin (191.30).
The absence of Asia’s top springboard divers made it easier for Dhabitah to achieve her Olympic dream.
Malaysia have now achieved a maximum representation of two divers for the Olympics in this event.
In July, Wendy Ng qualified through the World Championships in South Korea.
“I am really happy that I managed to win gold and qualify for the Olympics,” said Dhabitah at the National Aquatics Centre here yesterday.
“I felt nervous ahead of the event, but I managed to deal with the pressure to achieve my target.
“It was not as easy as it looked. A few of my dives were a little off but overall I am happy with my performance.
“Obviously, there is still a lot of work to be done, and I will continue working hard to improve.”
Dhabitah’s next target is to make the Olympic cut for the springboard synchro event with Wendy at next year’s World Cup in Tokyo.
In the mixed 10m platform synchro yesterday, Leong Mun Yee-Hanis Nazirul Jaya Surya finished third on 293.70.
China’s Duan Yu-Zhang Minjie posted 317.94 points for the title while North Korea’s Ri Kwon Hyok-Kim Kyong Sim (297.24) settled for silver.