China's divers in perfect harmony

Chinese duo Li Na and Sang Xue show gold medal winning form

British pair Mark Shipman and Tony Ally finished seventh in the men's synchronised three-metre springboard diving event and watched China's Xiong Ni win his second gold of the Games.

Xiong followed his golden performance in the individual springboard by clinching gold with partner Hailang Xiao to complete a remarkable comeback.

The 26-year-old Xiong retired after winning springboard gold in Atlanta, but returned to action in 1998 and only teamed up with Xiao a year ago.

Xiong becomes only the second male diver after Italy's Klaus Dibiasi to win medals at four Olympics and joins American Greg Louganis as the only man to defend springboard titles.

Reinstall

Li Na and Sang Xue captured gold in the women's synchro platform event to reinstall China among the world's top diving nations.

Ally and Shipman totalled 296.64 points, some way off the Chinese pair's winning total of 365.58, with Russians Dimitri Saoutine and Alexander Dobroskok taking the silver and Dean Pullar and Robert Newberry the bronze for Australia.

Saoutine also claimed his third medal of the Games, having won gold in the synchro platform with Igor Loukashin and bronze in the springboard.

The bronze for home pair Pullar and Newberry followed the earlier success of Rebecca Gilmore and Loudy Tourky who won Australia's first Olympic diving medal for 76 years in the women's synchro platform.

World Cup champions Li Na and Sang Xue overcame the shock of defeat in the individual platform event where American Laura Wilkinson pushed Li into second place with Sang placing fourth.

The Chinese pair blew away the opposition with a points total of 345.15, more than 30 ahead of Canada's Emilie Heymans and Anne Montminy who had earlier clinched Canada's first ever diving medal in the individual highboard event.

Success

China were celebrating more success when Fu Mingxia won a mighty battle to retain her Olympic 3m springboard title on Thursday and in the process achieved a record-equalling fourth career Olympic diving medal.

Fu, who had been trailing team-mate Guo Jingjing going into Thursday's final, and fell behind during the first three dives, snatched the gold in dramatic fashion on her final two dives.

Despite dropping to ninth following her second forward three and a half turn somersault, Fu came back to nail three top dives in a row.

She achieved a total of 609.42 points, with Guo winning silver on 597.81, and third place going to European silver-medallist Doerte Lindner of Germany on 574.35.