(WANG DINGCHANG)

Twins Jiang Wenwen/Jiang Tingting took the duet crown at the 12th FINA Synchronized Swimming World Cup on September 17 in Changshu, east China's Jiangsu Province.

The gold medal is the first ever won by Chinese synchronized swimmers in major international competitions since the sport started in China in the late 1970s.

Performing like graceful cranes, the sisters showed their elegance overcoming the difficulties in the free routine duet finals, winning the title with 96.65 points.

It was not easy for the 24-year-old twins to achieve glory as the older sister Jiang Wenwen had career-threatening chest surgery last year.

In the eyes of their long-time coach Zheng Jia, who has tutored the twins for more than 10 years, the sisters were born for synchronized swimming, and are considered to have the most beautiful legs in the world by many coaches. They explored their advantages in the duet final with their Crane Dance.

Four years ago, the twins made their debut in the 11th World Cup in Japan with a fifth place finish. They stepped up to take fourth place in the Beijing Olympic Games in 2008, and were bronze medalists in last year's World Swimming Championships in Italy.