HOUSTON -- An Olympics diving star and her teammate lost a lawsuit against USA Diving, disputing their omission as a synchronized Olympic diving team, KPRC Local 2 reported Saturday.

Laura Wilkinson, a 2000 Olympic gold medalist, already clinched an automatic berth to Beijing by winning the 10-meter platform at the Olympic trials.

Shortly afterward, Wilkinson went to a selection camp in Knoxville, where she competed with teammate Jessica Livingston for a berth in synchronized diving.

Wilkinson and Livingston split the four events against their competitors, and had a higher average score. But, they were still passed over.

So, they asked an arbitrator to intervene and put them on the team.

"We just really felt like it was an unfair decision -- that not everything was looked at, and that some of the procedures weren't met," Wilkinson said.

"They've proven themselves internationally against those girls at grand prix events and they come out on top every single time," Olympic coach Kenny Armstrong said.

A hearing was held for 11 hours on Friday in Los Angeles. Wilkinson and Levingston found out on Saturday that their appeal failed.

Wilkinson said in a statement that she respects the decision and wishes the best to Haley Ishimatsu and Mary Beth Dunnichay, the team originally selected for synchronized diving.

The team selected to go to Beijing lives and trains in Indianapolis, the headquarters of USA Diving. Armstrong said the oversight is not an isolated incident.

"It's happened the last three times in major events. It's very well publicized -- the metrics that they use," he said.

Before she goes for gold in Beijing, Wilkinson left to compete in the nationals. She was looking to win her 20th U.S. title.