Reigning three-time world champions Lien Yun-tie, Yang Chao led the eight-man final from the first of six rounds and won commandingly with 490.35 points. Daley and Williams received 463.44 points and repeated the silver from the February WC in Doha, Wiens and Zsombor-Murray received 422.13 points.
“We were nervous until the very last attempt, we couldn’t be sure of anything until the end,” said 23-year-old Lien Tyun-tie. “When we saw that the British were going to jump right in front of us, we were under pressure because they are a great pair. But we did better and that’s why we won,” added the five-time overall world champion.
The 30-year-old Daley, who made his debut at the 2008 Beijing Olympics as a fourteen-year-old, did not defend the gold from Tokyo, which he won with Matty Lee, but he was already happy about his fifth Olympic medal. One of the most famous British athletes originally retired after Tokyo, but returned to the sport after a two-year break. From five Olympics, he has gold, silver and three bronze medals in his collection.
“The Chinese were absolutely brilliant, they were in incredible shape. All their jumps were perfect,” said Daley, who only started training with Williams nine months ago. “To be back in competition within a year is something I didn’t expect to be able to do,” said the 14-time major event gold medalist.
As expected, the representatives of favored China dominated the second of the eight jumping competitions in Paris. On Saturday, Zhang Yani and Chen Yiwen won the synchronized jumps from the three-meter board.
