Wang Shun Hits 4:12.03 in 400 IM Final at Chinese Olympic Trials

CHINESE OLYMPIC TRIALS #1

• Friday, April 30th – Saturday, May 8th
• Qingdao, China
• Primary Olympic Qualifier
• LCM (50m)
• Results via Asian Media

Two swimmers secured Fina ‘A’ cuts during the first finals session of the Chinese Olympic Trials.

First, Chinese National Record-holder and two-time Olympian Wang Shun won the men’s 400 IM final with a time of 4:12.03. 27-year-old Shun undercut the Fina ‘A’ standard by more than 3.5 seconds, coming within 3 seconds of his National Record from 2013.

Shun’s season-best time of 4:11.85 from January ranks him 3rd in the world this year:

In the women’s 400 IM, 15-year-old Yu Yiting touched the wall in 1st place with a time of 4:37.88. She beat the Fina ‘A’ cut by .75. Yiting recently broke the World Junior Record in this event after posting a 4:35.94 in January. That time ranks her 5th in the world this year:

National Record holder and 2012 Olympic gold medalist Ye Shiwen finished in 3rd place (4:44.29).

Notably, Chinese National Record-holder Zhang Yufei posted a 56.42 to win the women’s 100 fly semifinal. This was about half a second off the 55.96 she swam during prelims, which was within .34 of her lifetime best from last year. Her National Record is still the fastest 100 meter fly time in the world this season.

However, Yufei said after her prelims race on Friday that she was not happy with her time. She said she was aiming to break the World Record of 55.48, held by Sweden’s Sarah Sjostrom, during the heats.

In the men’s 100 breaststroke semifinal, Yan Zibei crushed his prelims time of 1:00.58 and touched the wall 1st with a time of 59.21. Zibei’s season-best time of 58.73 from September still ranks him 4th in the world this season:

Both Yufei and Zibei will have to repeat their swims under the FINA ‘A’ cut in the finals heats.

No one was able to crack the FINA ‘A’ cut in the men’s 400 freestyle final, though 1st place finisher Zhang Ziyang came the closest (3:48.14).

Top 3 Finishers in Each Event:

Men’s 400 IM – Final

• Fina ‘A’ cut: 4:15.84
• Chinese National Record: 4:09.10 – Wang Shun (2013)

1. Wang Shun – 4:12.03
2. Qin Haiyang – 4:17.36
3. Liu Zongyu – 4:17.80

Women’s 100 Butterfly – Semifinal

• Fina ‘A’ cut: 57.92
• Chinese National Record: 55.62 – Zhang Yufei (2020)

1. Zhang Yufei  – 56.42
2. Wang Yichun – 58.30
3. Yu Yiting – 59.43

Men’s 400 Freestyle – Final

• Fina ‘A’ cut: 3:46.78
• Chinese National Record: 3:40.14 – Sun Yang (2012)

1. Zhang Ziyang – 3:48.14
2. Ji Xinjie – 3:48.58
3. Cheng Long – 3:48.59

Women’s 400 IM – Final

• Fina ‘A’ cut: 4:38.53
• Chinese National Record: 4:28.43 – Ye Shiwen (2012)

1. Yu Yiting – 4:37.88
2. Ge Chutong –4:39.23
3. Ye Shiwen – 4:44.29

Men’s 100 Breaststroke – Semifinal

• Fina ‘A’ cut: 59.93
• Chinese National Record: 58.63 –Yan Zibei (2019)

1. Yan Zibei – 59.21
2. Sun Jiajun – 1:00.81
3. Qin Haiyang – 1:01.09