SHENZHEN teenager He Zi beat two-time champion Blythe Hartley of Canada in the women’s 1m springboard in Melbourne on Friday night, giving China its fifth gold medal at the World Aquatic Championships.

He won with 316.65 points — 5.45 more than Hartley, who was the champion two years ago in Montreal and in 2001 in Fukuoka, Japan.

Yuliya Pakhalina of Russia took the bronze with 304.60.

He, a 16-year-old diving in her second major international meet, overtook Hartley in first place on her fourth dive. He’s reverse 2 1/2 somersault received 72.00 points — her highest score of the five-dive final.

The dive had a 3.0 degree of difficulty, and along with her third dive worth 3.1, He pulled off the toughest two dives of the final.

He made her international debut last December at the Asian Games and won a silver medal, but she looked like a veteran in this non-Olympic event.

China’s Qin Kai claimed gold in the men’s 3m springboard.

(SD-Agencies)