Several key Chinese swimmers spoke with the media this week, expressing their goals and aspirations for the 2020 Olympic Games set for Tokyo just over 200 days from now.
World Champion and embroiled freestyle ace Sun Yang is still eyeing an Olympic bid, despite the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) set to render its WADA vs Sun Yang & FINA case decision later this month. You can read the background on that case here.
“I’m looking forward to next year, because it is very special, with the Tokyo Olympics,” Sun Yang told Xinhua.
“From Rio to Tokyo, how time flies. After the Rio Olympics, many people thought that I would retire, but I didn’t. I’m still going today after four years of ups and downs. My goal, of course, is to stand on top of the podium.”
Sun most recently took 200m and 400m freestyle double gold at the 2019 World Championships in Gwangju, Korea, setting off a series of podium and photo op protests by fellow athletes.
Fellow teammate, Xu Jiayu, the man who took 100m backstroke gold in Gwangju, is also eyeing a successful Olympic lead-up.
“I got good results in 2019. As defending champion at the World Championships, I set a new championship record in a time of 52.17 seconds and showed my strength in international competition.
“I am more mature and more experienced facing the Tokyo Olympics than I was at the previous two Olympic Games. This time, I have the hope and the strength to compete for gold. Where there is a will, there is a way.”
On-fire Ye Shiwen, the 2012 Olympic Champion in the 400 IM, cemented her comeback at 2019 Worlds. After winning 3 events at Chinese Nationals, Ye earned her first major international medal since 2012 when she took silver in the 200 IM. She also went on to take silver in the 400 IM. We named her one of our 2019 Swammy Honorable Mentions for the Asian Female of the year.
Says the seasoned athlete, “My 2019 was perfect and everything was beyond my expectations. If I could mark myself, it would be more than full marks, 100+!
“My biggest gain from the Gwangju World Championships was to truly enjoy the event. My new year wish is, of course, to get good results at the Olympics and still enjoy competing.”
Let the man swim!