PLYMOUTH'S golden girls Tonia Couch and Sarah Barrow enter the international arena today looking for a positive performance at the FINA Diving World Cup.

The Devon duo go into the Olympic test event at the London Aquatics Centre British 10m platform synchro champions.

But beating the best in the UK, as they did at Southend's state-of-the-art complex at the end of January, is a relative breeze compared with the international competition Couch and Barrow are expecting to face today.

On the plus side, unlike the individual events, Team GB has already pre-qualified a synchro slot for the London 2012 Games, as the host nation.

And although Couch and Leeds-based Barrow, should be shoe-ins for the number one slot after great displays last year around the World Championships, there is no such thing as a 'given' with Great Britain's diving supremo Alexei Evangulov.

Performance director Evangulov has already had a pop at Plymouth diving superstar Tom Daley, over what the Russian perceives as the amount of time the city schoolboy spends on media commitments.

And with the likes of Team GB divers Stacie Powell, Rebecca Gallantree, Monique Gladding, Jenny Cowen waiting in the wings, Couch and Barrow know their display will come under scrutiny.

Plymouth Diving's Great Britain coach Andy Banks said the emphasis will be more on performance than results but he, like his Olympic hopefuls, will be disappointed if they do not make tonight's final.

Banks said: "Tonia and Sarah are diving well in practice and are looking very good, sharp and, as usual suitably confident.

"As Britain has already got a place in the (10m platform) synchro for the Olympics, it's not so much about how many points they get, but the performance.

"Having said that, of course, they will want to show how well they're doing against the best divers in the world, as Tonia and Sarah always try to do.

"We'll be looking for a top 12 place which they are more than capable of achieving.

"But right now, it's all about where they are and what shape they are in with a lot of competitions coming up.

"The place here is buzzing and the galleries are packed which is creating a terrific atmosphere, which is great for all of us who are involved in the sport."