Latest news with #YuYiting
Malay Mail
25-05-2025
- Sport
- Malay Mail
Twelve-year-old prodigy Yu Zidi dazzles with lightning wins as China's new swim star
BEIJING, May 26 — Chinese 12-year-old swimming sensation Yu Zidi could be the brightest young star at this year's world championships after producing a string of eye-popping performances this week. Yu, in her striking 'doggy' swim cap, rounded off a sensational China national swimming championships in Shenzhen by winning the women's 400m individual medley by almost two seconds on Saturday. Roared on by packed crowds in the southern city which borders Hong Kong, Yu crushed a quality field in a lifetime best 4min 35.53sec. Yu's time was comfortably inside the world qualifying standard of 4:43.06, the fifth fastest time of the year and would have been good enough for fourth place at the Paris Olympics. Second was Chang Mohan, who touched more than a body length adrift in 4:37.33, followed by Li Bingjie in 4:38.66. It came just a few days after the 12-year-old's 200m butterfly gold in a scarcely believable 2:06.83, also fifth fastest in the world this year and another time that would have garnered a fourth place in Paris. 'My lungs were about to explode!' Yu said after that win, according to state news agency Xinhua. 'I didn't know my time. I just focused on my pace, stroke-by-stroke.' Yu started the week-long China championships by taking second in the 200m individual medley behind Paris Olympian Yu Yiting, with another world-qualifying time of 2:10.63. That prompted the global governing body, World Aquatics, to post: '12-year-old sensation alert!' on X. The China meet serves as trials for the world championships, which take place in Singapore from July 27 to August 3, with the top two in each event eligible for selection, providing they have met the qualifying standard. Yu said it would be 'cool... to compete internationally in a swimsuit adorned with the national flag and my doggy cap', reported Xinhua, giving a nod to her black-and-white swim cap emblazoned with a cartoon puppy. China's swimming association told AFP it would finalise its team for the worlds after the national championships concluded on Saturday, without confirming if Yu would be included or giving a date for a squad announcement. Yu, who turns 13 in October, trains in the northern province of Hebei and has been earmarked as a 'prodigy' by Chinese state media since first making national headlines last year. Fellow Hebei native 23-year-old Li, whom Yu has called an 'idol', may have been only third behind the 12-year-old on Saturday, but she dominated the women's freestyle in Shenzhen with golds in the 200m, 400m, 800m and 1500m. Men's 100m freestyle world record holder Pan Zhanle, 20, won four individual golds and teamed up with the returning three-time Olympic gold medallist Sun Yang, Wang Shun and Fei Liwei to win the men's 4x200m freestyle relay. But the disgraced 33-year-old Sun, the first Chinese man to win an Olympic swimming gold, will not be going to the world championships. He recently returned to action after serving a four-year ban for a doping violation and China forbids those who have been suspended for 12 months or longer for doping from representing the country. — AFP
Asharq Al-Awsat
25-05-2025
- Sport
- Asharq Al-Awsat
Chinese 12-year-old Set for World Stage after Stunning Swims
Chinese 12-year-old swimming sensation Yu Zidi could be the brightest young star at this year's world championships after producing a string of eye-popping performances this week. Yu, in her striking "doggy" swim cap, rounded off a sensational China national swimming championships in Shenzhen by winning the women's 400m individual medley by almost two seconds on Saturday. Roared on by packed crowds in the southern city which borders Hong Kong, Yu crushed a quality field in a lifetime best 4min 35.53sec. Yu's time was comfortably inside the world qualifying standard of 4:43.06, the fifth fastest time of the year and would have been good enough for fourth place at the Paris Olympics, AFP reported. Second was Chang Mohan, who touched more than a body length adrift in 4:37.33, followed by Li Bingjie in 4:38.66. It came just a few days after the 12-year-old's 200m butterfly gold in a scarcely believable 2:06.83, also fifth fastest in the world this year and another time that would have garnered a fourth place in Paris. "My lungs were about to explode!" Yu said after that win, according to state news agency Xinhua. "I didn't know my time. I just focused on my pace, stroke-by-stroke." Yu started the week-long China championships by taking second in the 200m individual medley behind Paris Olympian Yu Yiting, with another world-qualifying time of 2:10.63. That prompted the global governing body, World Aquatics, to post: "12-year-old sensation alert!" on X. The China meet serves as trials for the world championships, which take place in Singapore from July 27 to August 3, with the top two in each event eligible for selection, providing they have met the qualifying standard. Yu said it would be "cool... to compete internationally in a swimsuit adorned with the national flag and my doggy cap", reported Xinhua, giving a nod to her black-and-white swim cap emblazoned with a cartoon puppy. China's swimming association told AFP it would finalize its team for the worlds after the national championships concluded on Saturday, without confirming if Yu would be included or giving a date for a squad announcement. Yu, who turns 13 in October, trains in the northern province of Hebei and has been earmarked as a "prodigy" by Chinese state media since first making national headlines last year. Fellow Hebei native 23-year-old Li, whom Yu has called an "idol", may have been only third behind the 12-year-old on Saturday, but she dominated the women's freestyle in Shenzhen with golds in the 200m, 400m, 800m and 1500m. Men's 100m freestyle world record holder Pan Zhanle, 20, won four individual golds and teamed up with the returning three-time Olympic gold medallist Sun Yang, Wang Shun and Fei Liwei to win the men's 4x200m freestyle relay. But the disgraced 33-year-old Sun, the first Chinese man to win an Olympic swimming gold, will not be going to the world championships. He recently returned to action after serving a four-year ban for a doping violation and China forbids those who have been suspended for 12 months or longer for doping from representing the country.
Yahoo
25-05-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Chinese 12-year-old Yu Zidi set for world stage after stunning swims
Chinese 12-year-old swimming sensation Yu Zidi could be the brightest young star at this year's world championships after producing a string of eye-popping performances this week. Yu, in her striking "doggy" swim cap, rounded off a sensational China national swimming championships in Shenzhen by winning the women's 400m individual medley by almost two seconds on Saturday. Roared on by packed crowds in the southern city which borders Hong Kong, Yu crushed a quality field in a lifetime best 4min 35.53sec. Yu's time was comfortably inside the world qualifying standard of 4:43.06, the fifth fastest time of the year and would have been good enough for fourth place at the Paris Olympics. Second was Chang Mohan, who touched more than a body length adrift in 4:37.33, followed by Li Bingjie in 4:38.66. It came just a few days after the 12-year-old's 200m butterfly gold in a scarcely believable 2:06.83, also fifth fastest in the world this year and another time that would have garnered a fourth place in Paris. "My lungs were about to explode!" Yu said after that win, according to state news agency Xinhua. "I didn't know my time. I just focused on my pace, stroke-by-stroke." Yu started the week-long China championships by taking second in the 200m individual medley behind Paris Olympian Yu Yiting, with another world-qualifying time of 2:10.63. That prompted the global governing body, World Aquatics, to post: "12-year-old sensation alert!" on X. The China meet serves as trials for the world championships, which take place in Singapore from July 27 to August 3, with the top two in each event eligible for selection, providing they have met the qualifying standard. Yu said it would be "cool... to compete internationally in a swimsuit adorned with the national flag and my doggy cap", reported Xinhua, giving a nod to her black-and-white swim cap emblazoned with a cartoon puppy. China's swimming association told AFP it would finalise its team for the worlds after the national championships concluded on Saturday, without confirming if Yu would be included or giving a date for a squad announcement. Yu, who turns 13 in October, trains in the northern province of Hebei and has been earmarked as a "prodigy" by Chinese state media since first making national headlines last year. Fellow Hebei native 23-year-old Li, whom Yu has called an "idol", may have been only third behind the 12-year-old on Saturday, but she dominated the women's freestyle in Shenzhen with golds in the 200m, 400m, 800m and 1500m. Men's 100m freestyle world record holder Pan Zhanle, 20, won four individual golds and teamed up with the returning three-time Olympic gold medallist Sun Yang, Wang Shun and Fei Liwei to win the men's 4x200m freestyle relay. But the disgraced 33-year-old Sun, the first Chinese man to win an Olympic swimming gold, will not be going to the world championships. He recently returned to action after serving a four-year ban for a doping violation and China forbids those who have been suspended for 12 months or longer for doping from representing the country. mya/dh
Independent Singapore
21-05-2025
- Sport
- Independent Singapore
12-year-old Chinese swimmer Yu Zidi stuns netizens with her Olympic-level swim at the Chinese nationals
- Advertisement - Chinese swimmer Yu Zidi gave an impressive performance at China's national swimming championships as she finished the women's 200m individual medley in two minutes 10.63 seconds, behind Paris Olympian Yu Yiting. Her record was within the qualification standard needed to participate in the World Championships in Singapore, which will happen in July and August. Moreover, her performance has given her the opportunity to represent China, though the final team has yet to be confirmed until after the conclusion of the week-long competition in Shenzhen. Furthermore, if the 12-year-old athlete had competed at last year's Paris Olympics, her record would have been fast enough to gain her a spot in the semi-finals. The young athlete told Chinese media earlier this year, 'In 2024, I participated in some competitions, achieved some results, and many swimming fans recognised me.' - Advertisement - 'After experiencing major competitions, I understood even better the importance of doing well in every training session to achieve good results and have a strong heart… The most difficult time is probably when you are closest to your goal. You must keep going,' she added. Yu Zidi trains in Hebei province, and recently, she has already been recognised as a 'new star' by Chinese state media. The young athlete first gained national attention last year for her outstanding swimming performances. In a social media post, World Aquatics shared: '12-year-old sensation alert! Yu Zidi just swam a blazing 2:10.63 in the women's 200m IM at the Chinese Nationals— the fastest time ever by a 12-year-old.' Netizens expressed their opinions about the real age of the athlete. One said, 'Let's take this with a grain of salt. China has lied about an athlete's age in Olympic sports before', while another added, 'Need to update your doping testing standards. The Chinese are always looking at how to beat the system. When the state sponsors cheating, you are chasing the state with your testing. Nothing about this person looks 12 years old.' - Advertisement - Issue with Chinese swimmers In the previous year, the performance of top Chinese swimmers has been under close investigation leading up to the Paris Olympics. China has selected 11 athletes who were to participate in the Games from a pool of 23 swimmers, who then previously tested positive for using illegal substances. Due to these doping issues, the International Testing Agency (ITA) has decided to increase testing for Chinese athletes. This includes conducting tests eight times, which is double the usual amount, between the start of 2024 and the Paris Games. Qin Haiyang and Sun Jiajun, two of the four gold medallists from the recent World Championships, were part of the 23 Chinese swimmers who tested positive for doping before the Tokyo Olympics. With this, the China Anti-Doping Agency explained that the athletes who failed tests before the 2024 Paris Olympics had accidentally taken heart medication trimetazidine. More so, foreign ministry spokesman Lin Jian also emphasised that China 'consistently adhered to the firm stance of zero tolerance for doping'.
Daily Telegraph
20-05-2025
- Sport
- Daily Telegraph
Chinese 12-year-old ‘sensation' Yu Zidi on course for swimming's World Championships
Don't miss out on the headlines from Swimming. Followed categories will be added to My News. A 12-year-old Chinese swimmer has been hailed a 'sensation' and is on course for the world championships after clocking the fastest time in history in her event at that age. Yu Zidi's blistering 2 mins 10.63sec in the women's 200m individual medley at China's national championships was well inside the standard required to qualify for Singapore in July-August. China's swimming association told AFP they will wait until the week-long national competition in Shenzhen finishes on Saturday before finalising their squad for the world championships in Singapore. Yu Zidi competes swimming at China's National Swimming Championships. Picture: AFP Yu's scintillating swim on Sunday gave her second place behind Paris Olympian Yu Yiting in Shenzhen. The global governing body, World Aquatics, tweeted: '12-year-old sensation alert!' Had the schoolgirl competed at last year's Paris Olympics, her time would have been good enough to reach the semi-finals. Yu, who turns 13 in October, trains in the northern province of Hebei and has been earmarked as a 'new star' by Chinese state media after first making national headlines last year. 'In 2024 I participated in some competitions, achieved some results, and many swimming fans recognised me,' she told Chinese media earlier this year. 'After experiencing major competitions, I understood even better the importance of doing well in every training session to achieve good results and have a strong heart.' She added: 'The most difficult time is probably when you are closest to your goal. You must keep going.' Originally published as 12-year-old 'sensation' on course for world stage after blitzing China's national swimming championships
