Hangzhou (China): In a display of remarkable versatility, triple breaststroke world champion Qin Haiyang stole the show by outpacing Olympic gold medalist Wang Shun in the qualifications for the men’s 200m medley final at the Asian Games.
Triple world champion in breaststroke, Qin Haiyang, continued to dazzle as he dominated the qualifiers for the men’s 200m medley final at the Asian Games. Qin, who made history by sweeping all three breaststroke titles and setting a world record in the 200m at the world championships in Fukuoka, clocked an impressive time of 1 minute 58.72 seconds.
Qin faced tough competition from his Chinese teammate, Wang Shun, who touched just behind him, setting the stage for an exciting gold-medal showdown. Wang, the Olympic medley gold medalist, has faced setbacks in recent world championships, missing out on the final in the last two editions.
Japan’s 2019 world champion in the event, Daiya Seto, secured the third-fastest time in the qualifiers with 1 minute 59.55 seconds, expressing a desire to improve and compete against the two Chinese swimmers.
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Meanwhile, Tokyo Olympic gold medalist Zhang Yufei from the host nation delivered a commanding performance in the 200m butterfly, finishing in 2 minutes 7.46 seconds. Zhang’s performance put her more than three seconds ahead of her nearest competitors, teammate Yu Liyan and Japan’s rising star Airi Mitsui.
Zhang, who recently claimed the 100m world title in Fukuoka, is set to participate in multiple events, including the 50m and 100m fly, as well as the 50m freestyle.
China and Japan are considered strong contenders to dominate the medals table at the Asian Games, having claimed 19 gold medals each in the 2018 edition. However, Japan has faced challenges following a disappointing world championships performance, while China aims to build on its success.
In other swimming events, South Korean sensation Hwang Sun-woo led in the 100m freestyle qualifications, clocking 48.54 seconds. Nevertheless, China’s Wang Haoyu stole the spotlight with the fastest qualification time of 48.13 seconds, expressing determination to perform well in the final.
Additionally, Chinese teenager Tang Qianting lowered her own Asian 50m breaststroke record to 29.92 seconds. Despite this achievement, she aims to surpass the world record of 29.16 seconds set by Lithuania’s Ruta Meilutyte earlier this year.
Two-time world champion Xu Jiayu qualified fastest into the men’s 100m backstroke final with a time of 53.68 seconds as he seeks to defend his title.
