U.S. Pair Sinks to Fifth At Diving Grand Prix

FORT LAUDERDALE, May 7 -- They sit smack in the middle of a developing mini-series at this venerated old swimming venue across the street from smoothie shops and smashing waves.

Centreville's Amanda Miller and Christina Loukas are trying to make their first world championship team as synchronized diving teammates, and the road to the season's biggest event in Rome at the end of July goes smack through the Ford Lauderdale Aquatic Center, an open-air stadium that is beginning to feel as familiar as their home diving venues at Purdue and Indiana universities.

They got a great start less than two weeks ago, winning their first U.S. title at the spring national championships here, but their spirits -- and, perhaps, hopes -- sank a bit Thursday when they managed only fifth place out of eight diving teams at the 2009 USA Diving Grand Prix, a prestigious international event, in the same diving well.

"It wasn't our best," said Miller, who earned a management degree from Purdue last year.

Even worse, it was Miller's 24th birthday. Yet the plot thickens. After more finals for other divers in other events Friday and Saturday, Miller and Loukas, 23, will participate in USA Diving's selection camp for the world championships, which begins Sunday.

In this very pool, of course.

"This competition, it's obviously a great experience," said Miller, who was born in the District. "But this coming weekend is what really counts."

Though the selection camp will officially determine the team, every step or misstep along the way could figure in, according to Steve Foley, USA Diving's High Performance Director. Foley said diving officials brought the camp here because this facility mirrors the conditions the divers will face in Rome, which also sports a roofless venue.

Foley and other members of the selection team are evaluating everything, and Thursday's competition featuring the gold-medal winning Chinese -- Guo Jingjing and Wu Minxia -- provided, he said, a significant measuring stick.

"What you do say is: 'Who can rise to the international level against the world's best, and can they carry that forward into a trial?'"

Americans Kelci Bryant and Ariel Rittenhouse, who finished fourth at last summer's Olympics in Beijing, got the day's biggest boost. They claimed the silver medal Thursday with 309 points, finishing only behind Guo and Wu, who dominated with a score of 335.10.

Eleven days ago at the spring championships, Miller and Loukas topped a U.S. field that did not include Bryant and Rittenhouse, who had been sent to an international grand prix in Mexico City. But even without the favorites to win the world championship spot in the field, the victory proved critical for Miller and Loukas; it earned them an invitation to this grand prix.