Florian Wellbrock of Germany finished first in 14:36.54, winning a gold medal in the men's 1,500m freestyle, followed by Mykhailo Romanchuk of Ukraine in 14:37.63 and Gregorio Paltrinieri of Italy in 14:38.75 each to secure silver and bronze medals.

The Gwangju worlds, which opened on July 12, ended its 17-day journey under the slogan "Dive into Peace."

It was the largest ever, featuring more than 2,500 athletes from 194 countries and regions. It topped the previous biggest in Kazan, Russia in 2015 that brought together 2,146 athletes from 184 nations and regions.

The athletes competed for 76 gold medals in six disciplines: swimming, artistic swimming, diving, high diving, open water swimming and water polo.

China sent a squad of 99 athletes to vie in all disciplines. Through the races, 43 percent of the 2020 Tokyo Olympic qualification spots were allocated.