DIVING champion Liu Tian sent shock waves of disappointment on Wednesday as she failed to clinch the Gold Medal in the 3m Springboard Finals at the Asian Youth Games held in Singapore.

One of the strongest contenders in this sport, Liu was one of the highly anticipated competitors to complete China's winning streak at the Girl's Diving competition.

The Gold medal slipped out of her hands when her third dive was called by the referee as a failed dive - her feet hit the water slightly before her hands did. Liu was attempting a 2.9 degree difficulty dive.

At a press conference following the medal ceremony, Liu told the Asian Youth Games that she did not expect to do so badly and promised to work hard in the future.

Liu's coach, Yu Xiao Ling, told Asian Youth Games that she was putting a lot of pressure on herself which could have affected her concentration, resulting in the failed dive.

The surprise turn of events concluded the Diving competition at the 1st Asian Youth Games Singapore 2009 when Republic of Korea's Kim Nami took home the Gold in the Girl's 3m Springboard Finals after scoring 357.2.

The silver medal went to Macau's Lei Sio, who scored 350.45.