Chinese swimmer Yu Zidi gave an impressive performance at China’s national swimming championships as she finished the women’s 200m individual medley in two minutes 10.63 seconds, behind Paris Olympian Yu Yiting.
Her record was within the qualification standard needed to participate in the World Championships in Singapore, which will happen in July and August. Moreover, her performance has given her the opportunity to represent China, though the final team has yet to be confirmed until after the conclusion of the week-long competition in Shenzhen.
Furthermore, if the 12-year-old athlete had competed at last year’s Paris Olympics, her record would have been fast enough to gain her a spot in the semi-finals.
The young athlete told Chinese media earlier this year, “In 2024, I participated in some competitions, achieved some results, and many swimming fans recognised me.”
“After experiencing major competitions, I understood even better the importance of doing well in every training session to achieve good results and have a strong heart… The most difficult time is probably when you are closest to your goal. You must keep going,” she added.
Yu Zidi trains in Hebei province, and recently, she has already been recognised as a “new star” by Chinese state media. The young athlete first gained national attention last year for her outstanding swimming performances.
In a social media post, World Aquatics shared: “12-year-old sensation alert! Yu Zidi just swam a blazing 2:10.63 in the women’s 200m IM at the Chinese Nationals— the fastest time ever by a 12-year-old.”
Netizens expressed their opinions about the real age of the athlete. One said, “Let’s take this with a grain of salt. China has lied about an athlete’s age in Olympic sports before”, while another added, “Need to update your doping testing standards. The Chinese are always looking at how to beat the system. When the state sponsors cheating, you are chasing the state with your testing. Nothing about this person looks 12 years old.”
Issue with Chinese swimmers
In the previous year, the performance of top Chinese swimmers has been under close investigation leading up to the Paris Olympics. China has selected 11 athletes who were to participate in the Games from a pool of 23 swimmers, who then previously tested positive for using illegal substances.
Due to these doping issues, the International Testing Agency (ITA) has decided to increase testing for Chinese athletes. This includes conducting tests eight times, which is double the usual amount, between the start of 2024 and the Paris Games.
Qin Haiyang and Sun Jiajun, two of the four gold medallists from the recent World Championships, were part of the 23 Chinese swimmers who tested positive for doping before the Tokyo Olympics.
With this, the China Anti-Doping Agency explained that the athletes who failed tests before the 2024 Paris Olympics had accidentally taken heart medication trimetazidine. More so, foreign ministry spokesman Lin Jian also emphasised that China “consistently adhered to the firm stance of zero tolerance for doping”.