By Michael Church, OCA Media
Tokyo, Japan, September 30, 2026: Chen Yiwen saw off the challenge of compatriot Chen Jia to retain her Asian Games gold medal in the women’s 3 metre springboard on Wednesday as China’s divers continued their dominance of the diving events at Tokyo Aquatic Centre.
Chen Yiwen, the Olympic champion in the event in Paris two years ago, finished first with 358.05 points.
Chen Jia took silver on 347.45 points and Sayaka Mikami of Japan won the bronze with 332.35 points.
“I'd give myself an eight out of 10,” said Chen Yiwen, who won gold in both the individual and synchronised 3 metre springboard events again having also completed the double at Hangzhou 2022.
“Compared with the previous Asian Games, my performance this time wasn't quite as good. But I think I still performed at the level I showed in training. And I feel that everyone on the coaching team has worked really hard.”
Chen Yiwen, Chen Jia and Mikami shared first place after the opening round of dives with all three awarded 63.00 points for an inward two-and-a-half somersaults with pike but by the midway point the contest had turned into a battle between the Chinese duo.
Chen Jia held the advantage going into the penultimate round but Chen Yiwen showed her experience by posting the best score of the competition in the fourth round, amassing 79.05 for a forward three-and-a-half somersaults with pike with a 3.1 degree of difficulty.
That effectively sealed the title for the 27-year-old in the event in which she is also the three-times reigning world champion.
“This was actually my first Asian Games,” said Chen Jia, who partnered Chen Yiwen to win the 3 metre synchronised event earlier in the week. “For me, winning one gold and one silver medal is still a good achievement, but there’s always a little regret left behind.
“I think that regret will become motivation for the next stage of my training. I hope to pay more attention to my own issues in the individual event, and then use this winter training period to focus on solving them.”
Mikami’s bronze was a repeat performance for the Japanese diver from three years ago in Hangzhou, when she finished third behind Chen Yiwen and Chang Yani.
“Being able to win a medal at two consecutive Games, I feel relieved that I’ve at least achieved my minimum goal,” she said.
“Also, throughout all five of my dives, my performances were stable and in order, so I’m very satisfied with that. However, I’m still far from the top athletes, so while I’m happy with the result, it also made me think that I need to keep working even harder.”