Yu Zidi was fastest in the 200m butterfly in Tokyo — Channel NewsAsia
In Tokyo, Japan, 13-year-old Chinese swimmer Yu Zidi recorded the best time in the 200-metre butterfly qualifying heat at the Asian Games. She advanced to the evening final with a time of 2 minutes 7.97 seconds, Channel NewsAsia reports.
Yu Zidi’s qualification
Swimming events began on the first day of the Asian Games at the Tokyo Aquatics Centre. Yu Zidi was 2.7 seconds faster than the second-fastest qualifier, fellow Chinese swimmer Chang Mohan.
Yu Zidi will turn 14 in October. Last year, she became the youngest medallist at the World Aquatics Championships: at the age of 12, she won bronze in the 4x200-metre freestyle relay as part of China’s national team. At the same World Championships, she finished fourth three times in individual events.
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This year, the Chinese athlete notably defeated multiple Olympic champion Regan Smith of the United States in March.
Other results of the day
Olympic champion Pan Zhanle of China was the fastest in the men’s 100-metre freestyle qualifying event. He swam the distance in 48.07 seconds, ahead of South Korean athlete Hwang Sun-woo. Pan won a gold medal and set a world record in the same event at the Paris Olympic Games.
In the men’s 200-metre individual medley qualifying event, Japan’s Tomoyuki Matsushita posted the best result — 1 minute 58.56 seconds. At the 2023 Asian Games in Hangzhou, Japan’s national team won five gold medals in swimming and placed third in the medal standings for the sport.
