China’s 13-year-old swimming sensation Yu Zidi lit up the Asian Games pool again on Monday as she claimed the 200 meters individual medley gold medal with a blistering time that will put Canadian dynamo Summer McIntosh on notice. Yu touched in 2 minutes, 6.10 seconds at the Tokyo Aquatic Center to smash runner-up Yu Yiting’s Asian record (2:06.82) and fall only four-tenths of a second short of 20-year-old McIntosh’s world record (2:05.70). It’s an achievement that shows the hard work of our team,” said Yu, who won the 200m butterfly on Sunday.
Already Asia’s fastest in the women’s medley at 13, Yu’s stunning trajectory raises questions of how much stronger she will be at the Los Angeles Olympics. It could mean a battle royale in LA against McIntosh, who won the 200 and 400 individual medley double at the Paris Games. At 12, Yu became the youngest world championship medallist with a bronze in China’s 4x200 freestyle relay team in Singapore.
Her global success at such a young age raised concerns from child protection experts but Hong Kong swimmer Siobhan Haughey said Yu looks ready for the Olympics. Haughey said young swimmers like Yu were exciting for the sport but at 28, she was glad to hold her own.
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