BARCELONA — China's defending champion He Chong won the men's 3m springboard world title for the third time in succession 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 synchronized gold Tuesday with parter Qin Kai, who finished fifth on Friday, this was He's fifth gold medal at a world aquatic championships. 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. US stars out to build on Phelps' legacy Swim stars Missy Franklin and Ryan Lochte have said Team USA must build on the legacy left by pool legend Michael Phelps with swimming's world championships to start Sunday. Phelps will only be a spectator at Barcelona's Palau Sant Jordi stadium after the 28-year-old retired last year having won a record 18th career Olympic gold medal at London 2012. In his wake, 18-year-old Franklin will be competing in eight events in Barcelona, having won four golds in London, while Lochte, 28, is scheduled to race in seven events over eight days. Both have attracted comparisons to Phelps, who won a record eight gold medals at the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games, but they insist their compatriot is incomparable. “Michael has his own legacy, I don't think anyone will ever match it,” said Franklin, who will race in the 100m and 200m freestyle, all three backstroke events over 50m, 100m and 200m, plus three relays. “He has created a path in swimming which is such a bright light and will continue to shine for years and years to come. “His legacy speaks for itself and we have to try and create our own.” Having enjoyed titanic battles with Phelps over the years, Lochte, who has won 12 world gold medals dating back to 2005, said he will miss his former rival, but has fresh competition to worry about. “There is no doubt about it, Phelps is going to go down in history as the best swimmer ever,” said Lochte. “I wish he could come back, I liked racing against him, it was fun. He has made this sport bigger than what it is. “He was the hardest swimmer I ever had to go up against and we have grown into a really good friendship because of that. Am I going miss him? Yes. We pushed each other.” Phelps has repeatedly ruled out a return to the pool and Lochte will be defending the four world titles he won at the 2011 world championships in Shanghai. — Agencies
