Wang Shun of Zhejiang reacts after the men's 200m freestyle final at the 2021 Chinese National Swimming Championships in Qingdao, east China's Shandong Province, May 3, 2021. (Xinhua/Xu Chang)
Wang Shun showed dominance in men's 200m medley, winning his 10th national championship gold and ninth in consecutive with a time of 1:56.78.
QINGDAO, May 8 (Xinhua) -- Wang Shun clocked one minute and 56.78 seconds to seal victory in the men's 200m medley at the Chinese National Swimming Championships here on Saturday, bagging his 10th national title since 2011 and ninth consecutive gold medal in the event since 2013.
Wang's main rival was Qin Haiyang of Shanghai, who once set a world youth record. Wang went ahead early, boasting a 0.11 seconds lead after 50 meters, and coasted to victory to collect his third gold medal at the event with a world second-best time this year.
"The result was OK, just like what I expected before the race," said Wang. "But I slacked a little bit after the first 50m butterfly."
"The gold medal was a meaningful gift for me as I have proved myself during the last 10 years. In fact, I did not count on that, but my friend reminded me about it this morning," Wang added.
Wang Shun (C) of Zhejiang, Qin Haiyang (L) of Shanghai and Liu Zongyu of Shandong pose during the awarding ceremony of the men's 200m individual medley final at the 2021 Chinese National Swimming Championships in Qingdao, east China's Shandong Province, May 6, 2021. (Xinhua/Xu Chang)
Taking bronze in the men's 200m individual medley at the 2015 Kazan World Championships and again in 2017, Wang made the breakthrough in the men's medley in the Chinese history. At the 2016 Rio Olympics, Wang managed to bag another bronze in the same event.
With a relatively stable performance, Wang believes that he still needs to improve to achieve better results at the upcoming Tokyo Olympics.
"There was no competition during the past year, however, this year has been really intensive," said Wang. "I hope to get the best out of myself before the Olympics." ■
