In winning the men’s 100m freestyle gold in Kazan yesterday, Ning Zetao became the first Chinese man ever to win the event at a World Championships. His time of 47.84 knocked down some stiff competition, including Australian sprinter Cameron McEvoy and America’s Nathan Adrian.
Speaking post-race, Ning Zetao described his race strategy as capitalizing on his closing speed, of which he says “I’m always good at the last 50”. But in this race, he also focused more attention on getting out fast. He says he has now improved his first 50 and was thus able to use his “full power”.
Splits for Ning Zetao‘s winning 47.84 time: 22.76/25.08
When asked what he wants the world to know, aside from his doping suspension back in 2011, the 22-year old said simply, “I am Ning Zetao, I am Chinese and I can be on top of the world in this event.”
I am fluent in Chinese and the English subtitles are not accurate translations of what he is saying in Chinese.