In 1961 Diaconescu was ranked fourth in the world, her second top 10 ranking, after she placed second behind Yelena Gorchakova at the second Summer Universiade with a throw of 50.64 m and threw 56.64 m, her personal best, in Sofia on July 15. In 1962 she placed second to Ozoliņa at both the European Championships in Belgrade and the UIE World Student Games in Helsinki and was again world-ranked second. She remained in the world's top ten in 1963 and 1964; at the 1964 Summer Olympics she threw 53.71 m and placed sixth.