Australia's open water swimming ace Chelsea Gubecka has landed another World Aquatics Championships silver medal, losing out in the 5-kilometre race following a thrilling duel with double gold medallist Sharon van Rouwendaal.

Australia's diving team was also among the medals, with the experienced double act of Anabelle Smith and Maddison Keeney claiming silver in the 3-metre springboard synchronised final in Doha.

Gubecka was left far from downhearted after losing out on the gold after a thrilling sprint finale in the Qatari capital's old port, believing she is getting better with every race and well-placed for Olympic glory in Paris' river Seine.

"It means so much and I feel like I am getting better with age," said Gubecka, who was runner-up in the 10km at last year's world titles in Fukuoka.

"I just fell short of the finish there but I am just so stoked that I could put in a medal performance.

"Today's result cements that what we are doing at home is right, so I'm really happy to walk away with a silver.

"I am learning so much about the sport even still. I just enjoy the journey.

"It gets hard, it is a little bit more physical, but I love this stuff, I love the wind chop and now I am just going to continue the great work ahead of the Olympic Games."

Queenslander Gubecka, the first Australian athlete selected for Paris, took the fight to the Dutch all-time great van Rouwendaal over the last of three laps on Wednesday (local time).

She was overhauled by the former Olympic champion's electric burst through the last 150m, which earned van Rouwendaal the 5km/10km golden double.

Smith, 31, and 27-year-old Keeney added another medal to their collection after taking bronze at the 2016 Olympics and also at the 2022 world titles in Budapest.

But this time, they upgraded to silver with only the brilliance of Chen Yiwen and Chang Yani, who totalled 323.43 points from their five dives, outdoing the Australian duo's 300.45 total.

Great Britain's Scarlett Mew Jensen and Yasmin Harper took the bronze (281.70).

For Smith, it secured a third world championships medal 13 years since she won her first as a teenager with Sharleen Stratton in the same event in Shanghai 2011.

It took the Australian tally to four medals in the diving pool, headed by Alysha Koloi's gold and Li Shixin's silver in the 1m springboard events.

Li, who also won a bronze in the mixed three-metre and 10m team event, was unable to add to his tally on Wednesday as he had to settle for 10th place in the men's three-metre springboard final.

AAP