Doctors told Taneka Kovchenko she would risk being a quadriplegic if she continued diving, compelling her to make the heartbreaking decision to retire days ahead of the Gold Coast Commonwealth Games.
The Australian diving team is reeling after neurological scans revealed the "super scary" news for the 10m platform medal chance.
Suffering headaches and neck pain since late 2017, Kovchenko underwent testing which revealed a compressed spinal cord at the base of her skull.
"The neurologist and doctors were very clear that if a dive was to go wrong that the result would be being a ventilated quadriplegic," Kovchenko posted on Instagram.
"This was a super scary moment.
"I thought of every scenario to try and continue diving till at-least the end of this season however the risks highly outweighed the options of continuing to dive and sadly had to make the heartbreaking decision to stop diving."
Kovchenko has been replaced by Queensland-based 10m platform diver Teju Williamson who arrived at the athletes village on Monday, just days ahead of the four-day diving program which starts on April 11.
"It's shocking news for Taneka who had been suffering from headaches for some time before a series of scans showed a congenital problems around her scull and brain and her neurologist had no alternative but to advise her to retire from diving," Games team diving manager Michael Hetherington said.
"Our hearts go out to her and her family who are so heavily involved in diving and on the eve of the Games, it is heartbreaking for Taneka and her family and our team.
"We wish her all the best and we know she will be cheering for the team as much as we will all be thinking of her."
Kovchenko was one of seven Games debutants named in Australia's 14-strong Australian team spearheaded by Olympic silver medallist Melissa Wu.
She was considered a medal chance with Wu in the platform synchro as well as the individual 10m event.
Kovchenko had claimed gold with Wu in the Diving Grand Prix event on the Gold Coast last November and finished fifth in the 10m synchro at the 2017 world titles.
Led by Wu at her fourth Games, Australia still hope to thwart world 10m champion Tom Daley's England and Canada and top the Games diving table for the first time since Melbourne 2006 after finishing third at Glasgow 2014.
Williamson will contest the 10m platform plus the synchro with Wu.
The pair have only had one training session together.
Australian Associated Press
