AFP
KAZAN, JULY 28
Chinese divers Chen Ruolin and Liu Huixia compete in the Women’s 10m platform synchronised final diving event at the 2015 FINA World Championships in Kazan on July 27, 2015. (AFP)
China could repeat their 2011 sweep of the diving gold medals at the world aquatic championships after Monday’s double victory left then with five wins from five in Kazan.
Teenager Xie Siyi claimed the men’s 1m springboard title to give his country their fifth straight win in the event having only switched from platform diving at the beginning of the year following an ankle injury.
Then Olympic champion Chen Ruolin claimed her fifth successive world women’s 10m synchro gold medal alongside parter Liu Huixia.Earlier 19-year-old Xie succeeded compatriot Li Shixin, the world champion in 2011 and 2013, in the 1m springboard, which has been dominated by China with eight wins from the last nine championships.
The teenager won gold with a total of 485.50pts, beating off a strong challenge from Ukraine’s Illya Kvasha, the 2013 silver medallist in the event, who collected 339.05pts over the six rounds while Mike Hixon of the USA won bronze with 428.30pts.
Chen and Liu then successfully defended their women’s 10m platform title in the evening’s final as they kept up an unbeaten run that comprises eight titles over the past 14 years.
Their winning score of 359.52pts was comfortably ahead of Canadian pair Meaghan Benfeito and Roseline Filion on 339.99pts.
North Korea picked up bronze thanks to Kim Un Hyang and Song Nam Hyang who won their country’s first medal in the event with a score of 325.26.
Xie is now targeting another gold in Wednesday’s team event alongside Chen, but admitted his victory caught him by surprise.
“I did not expect to win the gold. It is my first world championships, I thought a medal should be good for me because I have just turned to springboard for about six months,” said Xie.
“I was a platform diver before I broke my right ankle in early 2014.
“I had to change to springboard due to the injury at the beginning of this year.
“I will try my best in my next mixed team event together with Olympic champion Chen Ruolin”.
Having swept up all ten titles on offer when the 2011 world championships were held in Shanghai, Chinese divers are ruling the Kazan pool.
Wu Minxia and Shi Tingmao won the world 3m women’s synchronised diving gold on Saturday the same day Si Yajie and Tai Xiaohu, both just 17, won the mixed synchro 10-metre title.
On Sunday, Chen Aisen and Lin Yue won the men’s 10m platform synchronised gold.
Earlier Monday, Jordan Wilimovsky of the United States won the men’s 10 kilometre open water gold.
The 21-year-old Wilimovsky finished in a winning time of 1hr 49min 48.2sec as Dutch swimmer Ferry Weertman took silver, 12.1sec behind, while 35-year-old defending world champion Spyridon Gianniotis of Greece claimed bronze, at 12.5sec.
The top ten swimmers qualified for the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro meaning Gianniotis will be going to his fifth Games.
The Greek had been bidding for a third straight world crown here having won the 10km title at both the Barcelona 2013 and Shanghai 2011 championships.
Wilimovsky’s win was the US team’s second open water gold of these world championships after Haley Anderson won the women’s 5km title on Saturday.
There was good news for Russia on Monday as they won their fifth straight team gold in synchronised swimming as they held off China and Japan.
