Qin Haiyang Scares Asian Record in 50 Breaststroke at Chinese Championships
Qin Haiyang, one of the stars at last summer’s World Championships in Fukuoka, turned in a stellar performance on Tuesday night at the Chinese Championships. En route to qualifying for February’s World Champs in Doha, Qin won the 50-meter breaststroke in 26.25, just off his Asian record of 26.20. Sun Jiajun was the runnerup in 26.91.
The gold medalist in the 50, 100 and 200 breaststroke events in Fukuoka, Qin shared the spotlight with Frenchman Leon Marchand at the most-recent global showcase. His time from Tuesday night is an effort that has only been beaten by himself and world-record holder Adam Peaty, who owns the No. 1 mark in history at 25.95.
The women’s 200 freestyle featured a down-to-the-wire battle between Yang Junxuan and Li Bingjie, with Yang getting the win in 1:55.67. Already the winner of the 400 freestyle and 1500 freestyle, Li grabbed the silver medal in 1:55.73. Meanwhile, Niu Guangsheng topped the field in the men’s 200 butterfly as his time of 1:55.34 bettered the 1:55.79 of Chen Juner.
In other action, the women’s 50 breaststroke was won by Tang Qianting, who covered her lap in 30.31 for a half-second triumph. The men’s 50 backstroke went to Wang Gukailai in 25.07 and Zhang Zhanshuo emerged victorious in the 400 individual medley behind a swim of 4:15.71.