Synchronized divers Sarah Bacon and Cassidy Cook earn first-ever U.S. medals

SAINT-DENIS, France – Cassidy Cook and Sarah Bacon won silver in the women’s synchronized 3-meter springboard on Saturday, securing the United States’ first medal at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.

Their five dives totaled 314.64. Putting Americans on the podium at this event For the first time since 2012where Bacon and Cook shared the gold medal between gold medalist Zhang Yanyi and Chen Yiwen (337.68) of China and bronze medalist Jasmine Harper and Scarlett Meo-Jensen (302.28) of Great Britain.

For the duo, nicknamed Cook N’ Bacon, familiarity and friendship were key ingredients to their winning recipe, according to the divers who have been friends since they were kids and have been diving as a pair since 2019.

“I mean, I’m just so happy,” Cook told reporters. “I’m overwhelmed with so many emotions right now. You know, to be able to go out there and perform well and put together a strong list and finish on the medal podium with one of my best friends is amazing.”

World champions Zhang and Chen led from start to finish but Bacon and Cook said fighting to keep up with the strong Chinese duo helped them claim the silver medal.

“Obviously we were diving behind a great Chinese team, so they put a lot of pressure on us,” Cook said. “But seeing them dive made us motivated to do our dive. I think they made us better and I’m really happy to get this silver medal.”

Cook, 29, who lives outside Houston, competed in Rio in 2016, making her the first American female diver to compete. in non-consecutive matches.

“Then we found out we were the first metal band in the US, which was an even more amazing feeling,” Cook said.

The event has been held seven times in Olympic history and a pair from China have won six of those events, only failing to finish on the podium in 2000.

Bacon, who nearly earned a spot on the U.S. diving team in Tokyo, said the disappointment turned into a blessing.

“Yeah, I mean we ended up not qualifying for the Olympic team in 2020 and my plan was to retire after those Olympics,” said Bacon, 27, an Indianapolis native.

“I was so exhausted and ready to quit. So not making the Olympic team kept me going and got me to these Olympics with Cassidy. To be on the podium with the silver medal is just unbelievable. I don’t have the words to describe it right now.”

Both competitors said, in light of what happened, that not qualifying for the Tokyo Olympics led to a better outcome.

Saturday’s competition was marked by enthusiastic and loud cheers for all competitors, but especially for the Chinese, Americans, French and Ukrainians.

“Everything happens for a reason,” Cook told NBC News later Saturday. “Those Games (in Tokyo), even though they were still the Olympics, they weren’t the real experience. If we had gone there, we probably would have retired because (we would have) achieved that goal.”

“I’m really glad we held out and got here,” she added.

Cook now has to relax and cheer on her teammates for the rest of the Olympics. Bacon is still competing in the individual 3-meter springboard event, which begins Aug. 7.

Once the Olympics are over, the two women will have tough decisions to make about where to put their medals in their homes.

“I want to display it, and maybe I should make a trophy room centered around the silver metal,” Cook said.

Although they were considered contenders for the metals sector on Saturday, Cook and Bacon said they had not previously given much thought to where potential devices would be placed in their homes.

“I’ll need to clear some space in my house before I can decide exactly where to put it,” Bacon said. “Maybe in a frame on a wall somewhere? It’ll serve as the focal point for something.”