China's He completes hat-trick of world 3m titles
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}
China's He Chong competes in the men's 3-metre springboard final diving event in the FINA World Championships at the Piscina Municipal de Montjuic in Barcelona on July 26, 2013. (AFP)
China's defending champion He Chong won the men's 3m springboard world title for the third time in succession on Friday to claim his second gold in three days.
He, 26, claimed gold with a score of 544.95 points from Russia's Evgeny Kuznetsov's 508.00 and Mexico's Yahell Castillo, who tallied 498.30.
Having won men's 3m synchronised gold on Tuesday with parter Qin Kai, who finished fifth on Friday, this was He's fifth gold medal at a world aquatic championships.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}
It brought China's tally to seven golds from eight diving events in Barcelona with two more events to come.
Olympic champion Ilya Zakharov failed to qualify for the final after the 22-year-old Russian struggled in Thursday's preliminary round, then missed out on one of the 12 places in the final.
Zakharov caused a shock at the 2012 London Olympics by winning the 3m crown ahead of Qin and He, who between them had won the three preceding world titles.