Chinese National Championships: Yang Junxuan Fires National Record 52.68 in 100 Free

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Photo Courtesy: Giorgio Scala / Deepbluemedia / Insidefoto

Chinese National Championships: Yang Junxuan Fires National Record 52.68 in 100 Free

Yang Junxuan set a national record in the women’s 100 freestyle of 52.68 seconds on Tuesday at the Chinese National Championships.

Yang undercut the record set twice, in 2020 and 2021, by Zhang Yufei at 52.90. Yang won by a wide margin over runner-up Wu Qingfeng, who was second in 53.25. Both are Olympic A cuts. Yang had been fifth in prelims.

In the relay reckoning, third was Cheng Yujie in 53.27, followed by Zhu Menghui in 54.12. Zhang had swum 53.34 in prelims before scratching the 100 free final in favor of semifinals in the 200 fly.

Cheng, Zhu and Wu were all part of the Olympic squad in Tokyo in 2021 that finished seventh but set an Asian record. Cheng, Yang, Wu and Zhang improved those marks at the World Championships in 2023.

Chinese National Championships Results

Fifth was a significant name in Yu Yiting in 54.24, followed by Li Bingjie in 54.36.

The national meet in Shenzen is occurring this week against the backdrop of news that a number of athletes tested positive for a banned substance in early 2021. That case was dismissed by China’s Anti-Doping Agency, with the blessing of the World Anti-Doping Agency, as a case of environmental contamination that brought no ban or erasure of results.

Elsewhere at the meet Tuesday, Pan Zhanle, the world record holder in the men’s 100 free, claimed another national title in the event. He went 46.97, pushing within .17 seconds of the mark he set at the Doha World Championships.

Wang Haoyu was a distant second, but his 48.11 earned silver and edged under the Olympic A standard. Ji Xinjie was third in 48.33. Chen Juner was fourth in 48.40, while six swimmers cracked 49 seconds to boost China’s Olympic podium hopes.

Niu Guangsheng booked his first trip to an Olympics. The 19-year-old went 1:55.46 to win the men’s 200 fly and get under the Olympic A cut. Xu Fang finished second in 1:56.97.

Gao Weizhong won the women’s 1,500 free in 16:06.19, her winning margin 9.99 seconds over Ma Yonghui. It’s an A cut for Gao, who will join Li in Paris in the event, Li having qualified via World Championships.

Qin Haiyang won the men’s 200 breast in 2:08.87 to set an A cut and get to Paris. Dong Zhihao was second in 2:10.08, more than two seconds slower than he was at the 2024 World Championships in Doha.

Zhang went 2:07.50 in semifinals to secure the top seed in the final of the women’s 200 fly. Fresh off her national record in the 100 breast, Tang Qianting set the pace in the women’s 200 breast in 2:26.14. She was just .39 seconds up on Ye Shiwen. Tao Guannan led the field in the men’s 200 back semifinals in 1:57.80, but Xu Jiayu is lurking in second in 1:58.86.

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John

10 days ago

Yang Junxuan’s performance at the Chinese National Championships was truly remarkable! Setting a new national record in the women’s 100 freestyle is no small feat. Her time of 52.68 seconds not only showcases her exceptional talent but also hints at great potential for upcoming international competitions. Congratulations to her and looking forward to seeing what she achieves next!

Peter Tonellato

9 days ago

ban the entire team….until they prove their clean