China pip Jack Laugher, Chris Mears to World Cup gold

British duo Jack Laugher and Chris Mears have been edged out for the gold medal in the men's 3m synchro event at the FINA Diving World Cup.

The pair - reigning Olympic, European and Commonwealth champions - had led the contest from the fourth round in Wuhan and held an eight-point advantage over home favourites Cao Yuan and Xie Siyi heading into the final round.

A straight shootout ensued as both pairings had the same final jump in their routine - the forward 4-1/2 somersault. Laugher and Mears were up first but could only manage an underwhelming score of 70.68, their worst mark outside of the required dives, for a total of 440.64.

Cao and Xie made no mistake when they took to the boards, wrapping up gold with a score of 88.92 for a winning total of 448.74.

Experienced Mexican partners Rommel Pacheco and Jahir Ocampo took the final spot on the podium with a total of 435.72, including a stunning score of 94.62 for their own take on the forward 4-1/2 in the final round.

Final leaderboard in full:

1. Cao Yuan, Xie Siyi (CHN) - 448.74 2. Jack Laugher, Chris Mears (GBR) - 440.64 3. Rommel Pacheco, Jahir Ocampo (MEX) - 435.72 4. Philippe Gagne, Francois Imbeau-Dulac (CAN) - 410.67 5. Mike Hixon, Sam Dorman (USA) - 392.82 6. Oleg Kolodiy, Oleksandr Gorshkovozov (UKR) - 386.52 7. Matthew Carter, Domonic Bedggood (AUS) - 386.01 8. Nikita Shleikher, Ilia Molchanov (RUS) - 384.48 9. Sho Sakai, Ken Tarauchi (JPN) - 384.24 10. Ahmad Azman, Tze Liang Ooi (MAS) - 379.41 11. Patrick Hausding, Lars Rudiger (GER) - 373.32 12. Giovanni Tocci, Andrea Chiaribini (ITA) - 347.82