Li Bingjie Reportedly Scratching 400 Free At Short Course Worlds, Remains On Heat Sheet

2022 FINA SHORT COURSE WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS

• Tuesday, December 13 to Sunday, December 18, 2022
• Melbourne Sports and Aquatics Centre, Melbourne, Australia
• SCM (25m)
• Prize Money
• Meet Site
• Meet Schedule
• Meet Roster Index
• Psych Sheets (Updated)
• Live Results
• Day 1 Prelims Heat Sheet

World record holder and defending champion Li Bingjie is reportedly sick and expected to sit out of the women’s 400 freestyle on the opening day of the 2022 Short Course World Championships.

According to “Chinese Swimming News and Results” on Twitter, Li came down with a high fever after arriving in Melbourne, and still hopes to compete later in the meet.

😭Li Bingjie is reported to have a high fever after arriving in Melbourne and will scratch today’s 400 free. She is still hopeful that she will be better soon to swim in other events.

— Chinese Swimming News and Results (@CHNswim_fan) December 12, 2022

Li has not officially scratched the event, as she remains on the heat sheets for the opening prelim session.

The 20-year-old Chinese superstar is the defending short course world champion in the women’s 400 and 800 free, and is also favored to win the inaugural title in the women’s 1500 free in Melbourne.

Li is the newly-minted world record holder in the 400 free, having clocked a blistering 3:51.30 back in October at the Chinese Swimming Championships.

There have been several other prominent scratches for both the Chinese team and on the opening day of the competition.

For China, another medal contender, Yang Junxuan, has scratched out of the meet entirely (at least individually), having previously been entered in the women’s 100 and 200 free. Yang was seeded third in the 200 free and seventh in the 100 free, and is the reigning long course world champion in the 200.

Another notable scratch for China is rising medley star Yu Yiting, who is also out of the meet after coming in as a medal threat in the women’s IM events. Yu is the World Junior Record holder in the 200 IM (SCM) and won silver in the event at the 2021 SC World Championships in Abu Dhabi.

#Melbourne2022
There are some scratches according to the start lists:
Yang Junxuan 100 and 200 free
Yu Yiting 100,200 and 400 IM
Liu Zhitong 200 fly
Tang Qianting 100 IM
Pan Zhanle 50 free

— Chinese Swimming News and Results (@CHNswim_fan) December 11, 2022

DAY 1 SCRATCHES

• Long course world record holder and reigning world champion Thomas Ceccon has scratched out of the men’s 100 back, but remains in the 50 fly. Ceccon was seeded fourth in the 100 back after hitting a personal best (and Italian Record at the time) of 49.62 on the FINA World Cup circuit.
• Great Britain’s Ben Proud has dropped the men’s 50 fly from his program as the fifth seed. Proud remains entered in the 50 free later in the meet.
• Alberto Razzetti will race the men’s 200 IM according to the Italian Federation despite no longer being listed on the updated psych sheets. Razzetti appears in the event in the prelim heat sheets on Tuesday. His only scratch will come in the men’s 100 IM.
• For Day 2 prelims, Beryl Gastaldello and Robert Glinta are two notable scratches out of the women’s and men’s 100 freestyle.