KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysian divers Cheong Jun Hoong and Pandelela Rinong are proving to be the best in the world.
On Friday, the duo beat a powerful field in the women's 10m platform synchro to win the gold medal in the third leg of the prestigious World Series in Montreal, Canada.
In pulling off the feat, Jun Hoong and Pandelela became the first ever Malaysian divers to capture a title in the World Series.
To win a gold in the World Series, which is only for the top eight ranked pairs in the world, is a feat considered even harder to achieve than in the Commonwealth Games where Jun Hoong-Pandelela also came out tops in the Gold Coast recently.
In Montreal, the Malaysian duo beat North Korea’s silver medallists Kim Mi-rae-Kim Kuk-hyang to finish first. China's Si Yajie-Lin Shan won the bronze
Canadians Meaghan Benfeito-Caeli McKay, the Commonwealth Games silver medallists, finished fourth.
Jun Hoong and Pandelela’s success augurs well for Malaysia’s hope to win its first ever Olympic gold medal, in 2020 in Tokyo.