Anton Down-Jenkins
Anton Down-Jenkins (born 6 September 1999) is a New Zealand Olympic diver who competed at the 2020 Summer Olympics.
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Nationality | New Zealand |
| Born | 6 September 1999 Wellington, New Zealand |
| Education | University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill |
| Height | 185 cm (6 ft 1 in) |
| Weight | 84 kg (185 lb; 13 st 3 lb) |
| Sport | |
| Country | New Zealand |
| Sport | Diving |
| Event(s) | Men’s 3m, Men’s 3m Synchronised, Mixed 3m Synchronised |
| University team | University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill |
| Partner | Elizabeth Cui, Liam Stone |
| Coached by | Yaidel Gamboa |
| Achievements and titles | |
| Olympic finals | 8th - Men’s 3m |
Down-Jenkins got his Olympic quota for individual 3 m springboard at the 2021 Diving World Cup, Olympic Qualification Event, held in Tokyo, in May 2021. The Wellingtonian, who competes in the 3m springboard, placed 10th at the event, New Zealand's best ever finish at a Diving World Cup.[1][2]
He competed in the individual 3m springboard event at the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, becoming the first male diver to compete for New Zealand at the Olympics since 1984.[1] He is the first New Zealand diver to qualify for an Olympic final, finishing 8th out of 12 divers,[3] from an original field of 29 in the competition.[4]
Down-Jenkins represented New Zealand at the Gold Coast 2018 Commonwealth Games where he placed 8th in the 3m syncronised and 14th in the individual 3m springboard.
Down-Jenkins is Māori; his iwi affiliation is Te Arawa.[5]
He is now based at the University of North Carolina.[6] He is openly part of the LGBTQIA+ community and identifies as gay.[7]
References
- "Anton Down-Jenkins becomes first NZ male diver in 37 years to make Olympic Games". Stuff. 26 May 2021.
- "Down-Jenkins set to be New Zealand's first male Olympic diver in almost 40 years". New Zealand Olympic Team. 26 May 2021.
- "Men's 3m Springboard Final - Results" (PDF). Olympics.com. 3 August 2021. Archived (PDF) from the original on 3 August 2021.
- "Tokyo Olympics 2020: Anton Down-Jenkins 'makes history' with eighth place finish in diving". NZ Herald. 4 August 2021. Archived from the original on 3 August 2021.
- "Te Arawa athlete Anton Down-Jenkins "pretty surprised" to be Aotearoa's first Olympic diver in 37 years". Te Karere, TVNZ. 2021. Archived from the original on 3 August 2021.
- "Anton Down-Jenkins – Swimming & Diving". University of North Carolina Athletics.
- "Tokyo Olympics: 10 inspiring gay and bisexual male athletes to look out for". Attitude.co.uk. 21 July 2021. Retrieved 21 July 2021.