China won three golds on the opening day of the IFBB Men's Bodybuilding World Championships, with Chinese bodybuilders completely dominating the podium in the men's classic bodybuilding 171cm final ©ITG

China and Iran won three gold medals apiece on the opening day of the International Federation of Fitness and Bodybuilding World Bodybuilding Championships at the Benidorm Palace here in the Spanish seaside resort. 

Chinese bodybuilders completely dominated the podium in the men's classic bodybuilding 171cm final. 

Wang Wei came out victorious, while compatriots Deng Le and Zheng Shaozhong finished second and third. 

Deng Shuai then took gold in the men's classic bodybuilding 180cm event.

South Korea's Jinwook Hwang got silver and Ukraine Ihor Smola finished with the bronze medal.

China's third gold medal came in the men's physique 179cm final, a category which was part of the first Men's Physique World Cup.

In the physique discipline, the athletes wear brightly coloured board shorts and only perform four quarter turns without having to also perform compulsory poses.

Liu Maoyi won the 179cm category with Kuwait's Mahmoud Alebraheem coming second and Farid Shirmohammaddzadehlahroudi of Iran finishing in third place.

Liu was then announced as the overall champion of the men's physique categories, becoming the first ever winner of the Men's Physique World Cup. 

Slovakia's Peter Tatarka won the +175cm category of the men's classic physique, before being named the overall winner of the event ©ITG
Slovakia's Peter Tatarka won the +175cm category of the men's classic physique, before being named the overall winner of the event ©ITG

Iran also have three gold medals to their name, the first coming from Vahid Badpi of Iran who was victorious in the men's classic bodybuilding 175cm category, beating South Korea's Jehyung Ryu and Pshdar Abdalla of Iraq.

Badpi was then named the overall winner of the classic bodybuilding event. 

Iran's Farshad Valipour won the men's classic bodybuilding +180cm category, with his compatriot Ali Mojtahedi securing silver and Spain's Jonatan Moreno getting bronze.

Badpi was then named the overall winner of the classic bodybuilding event. 

Arman Harsini got Iran's third gold in the men's physique +182cm category with Chulhyung Bae of South Korea coming second and Elvis Rudbahs of Latvia finishing in third place. 

Slovakia's Peter Tatarka was named the overall winner of the men's classic physique, which had only been announced by the IFBB as an official discipline in June. 

He had won the +175cm category, beating Yevhenii Mykhailenko of Ukraine and Ecuador's Andres Borja to do so. 

Action will continue tomorrow.