Swimmer Yu Zidi (13) achieves the first record in Asia | Sports

Less than a month after turning 13, Chinese sensation Yu Zidi set her first Asian record by winning the 200m individual medley last Tuesday at the China National Swimming Championships in Shenzhen. Yu’s time of 2:07.41 beat the Asian record of 2:07.57 set by her compatriot Shiwen Ye, who won an Olympic gold medal at the age of 16 at the 2012 London Games.

Yu, the youngest medalist in World Aquatics Championship history, finished almost a second ahead of 20-year-old 2022 Asian Games champion and runner-up Yu Yi-ting. Only eight swimmers in history have swum faster in this event, with Canadian Summer McIntosh holding the world record with a time of 2:05.70. Yu has made tremendous progress since breaking through at the Olympic trials in China last year, coming very close to qualifying for the Paris Games at just 11 years old.

In May, she became national champion in the 400m medley and 200m butterfly, and was runner-up in the 200m medley, qualifying for the world championships in Singapore. There, he won a bronze medal in the 4x200m freestyle relay with the Chinese team, becoming the youngest medalist in history. She also placed fourth in three individual events in Singapore: 200 medley, 400 medley and 200 butterfly. Yu will represent his home province of Hebei in this Thursday’s 200 butterfly event, aiming for another gold medal at the China National Games, which is held once every four years.

At the last Swimming World Cup, Yu’s appearance caused a sensation. “I never imagined a 12-year-old girl could swim that much,” said Brent Nowicki, executive director of the International Swimming Federation, World Swimming. Under this regulation, minors under the minimum age of 14 are only allowed to compete if they achieve the so-called A mark. But almost no one thought that children could achieve it. Zidi achieved it at the Chinese Championship.