Wang Shun of Zhejiang competes during the men's 400m individual medley final at the 2021 Chinese National Swimming Championships in Qingdao, east China's Shandong Province, May 1, 2021. (Xinhua/Xu Chang)
QINGDAO, China, May 1 (Xinhua) -- Two-time Olympian Wang Shun claimed the first title of the Chinese National Swimming Championships here on Saturday as he won the men's 400m individual medley (IM).
Wang, 27, clocked a time of four minutes 12.03 seconds, almost three seconds slower than his own national record and fifth in the current world ranking. Qin Haiyang finished second in 4:17.36 and Liu Zongyu took third in 4:17.80.
"I planned to swim faster, but it is really hard to get myself excited in the first event in the morning. I will try my best," Wang said.
In the women's 400 IM, 15-year-old Yu Yiting finished first in 4:37.88, beating Ge Chutong (4:39.23) and Olympic champion Ye Shiwen (4:44.29).
"The 400 IM seems to be a long distance for me. My goal is to qualify for the Olympic Games," said Ye, who will also compete in the 200m IM and 200m breaststroke.
Zhang Ziyang took victory in the men's 400m freestyle in 3:48.14 and the Jilin/Zhejiang mixed team won the women's 4X100m freestyle relay in 3:39.15.
Asian record holder Zhang Yufei timed 56.42 seconds in the women's 100m butterfly semifinals and Yan Zibei led the men's 100m breaststroke semifinals in 59.21.
More than 500 swimmers from 26 teams are competing in the nine-day championships, which also serves as trial event for this summer's Tokyo Olympic Games. Enditem
