Under Pressure

Diver Qiu Bo and his British rival Tom Daley face heavy expectations of victory from their homelands, Chen Xiangfeng reports in London.

Chinese diver Qiu Bo wears a jade necklace and a bracelet with gold coins as good luck charms.

His British counterpart Tom Daley doesn't rely on superstition.

The Briton is the darling of the Aquatics Center crowd, and the two rivals will meet in the men's 10m synchronized final on Saturday night (Sunday morning Beijing time).

Since China unexpectedly lost the men's 3m springboard final - which it usually dominates - to Russian underdog Zakharov Ilya, British fans have more reason to expect their diving sensation will grab another gold.

The ambitious Chinese diving team had originally sought to sweep all eight gold medals at the London Games.

Daley, 18, who knocked Qiu into second place at the 2009 World Championships, was cheering on Twitter right after China's 3m springboard flop.

He realized the 3m springboard failure offered him new hope and placed additional pressure on the Chinese team.

"Crazy night at the pool. Chinese domination is over in the men's 3m springboard event! Well done," he tweeted.

Qiu, 19, who beat Daley at last year's World Championship, tries to keep a low profile and avoids speculations about their clash, which he believes are distractions.

He said he will only focus on himself.

"The biggest challenge is for me to beat myself. The aim is to win everything," he said.

"I never think about winning the gold medal (in London). I focus on good preparation. If I perform well, the results speak for themselves."