SHANGHAI // China blew away the competition with an emphatic display of diving yesterday to make it two out of two gold medals at the Fina World Aquatic Championships as they chase a historic clean sweep.
In pictures: In sync in Shanghai
Pictures from the 14th Fina World Aquatics Championships in Shanghai, China.
Huo Liang, the Olympic champion, shrugged off the loss of long-time partner Lin Yue to injury as he combined perfectly with newcomer Qiu Bo in the 10-metre synchronised and claimed his third successive world title in the event.
"I haven't worked with Qiu Bo for so long, but our cooperation was smooth and we relate well," Huo said.
China also won the tournament's first gold, the women's 3-metre synchronised, on Saturday, to make the early running in their first world championships on home turf - three years after they topped the medals table at the Beijing Olympics.
China, hosting the biennial championships at Shanghai's Oriental Sports Centre, are gunning for the first-ever diving gold medal sweep after missing only one at the 2008 Games and winning seven out of 10 in 2009 championships. The swimming events start on July 24.
The tournament has been overshadowed by a high-profile doping case involving Cesar Cielo, the Brazilian swimming star, with officials tightening their drug-testing in a bid to catch cheats.