Qin Haiyang With 58.35 Asian Games Record In 100m Breaststroke Prelims; Ji Yuchan Goes 21.84 In 50 Free
Qin Haiyang produced the fifth-fastest 100m breaststroke of his career with a 58.35 Asian Games record on the second day of prelims in Hangzhou, China on Monday.
The Chinese swimmer wasn’t alone in setting a Games mark with Ji Yuchan of Korea going 21.84 in the 50 free and slicing 0.10 from Ning Zetao‘s 2014 standard in the process.
Ian Ho of Hong Kong (22.07) and Singapore’s Jonathan Tan (22.15) were the next through.
Qin returned to the Hangzhou Olympic Sports Centre Aquatic Sports Arena the morning after being well beaten in the 200IM by teammate Wang Shun.
Out in 27.04 and back in 31.31, the four-time world champion looks set to take another journey inside 58 with Yasuhiro Koseki’s Asian Games standard of 58.86 that had stood since the 2018 edition now consigned to history.
Qin completed his historic breaststroke treble at the World Championships in Fukuoka, Japan, in July before going on to replicate it less than a fortnight later at the World University Games in Chengdu, China.
Now he is the overwhelming favourite to claim yet another title with Korea’s Choi Dongyeol the only other man inside the minute mark in 59.90.
Qin too has been vocal in stating his ambition to add Adam Peaty’s WRs in the 50 and 100 to the 200 mark of 2:05.48 he set in Fukuoka.
Li Bingjie was the only woman inside 2mins in the 200 free, going 1:58.90 a day after her 1500 triumph with Olympic silver medallist Siobhan Haughey also through.
Mio Narita of Japan heads the women’s 2IM in 2:13.93 ahead of Chinese pair Yu Yiting (2:14.02) and Ye Shiwen (2:14.56).
Xu Jiayu returned after winning the 100 back to book lane four in the 50 in 24.99, the Chinese the only man inside 25 while Wang Xueer leads the women’s in 27.59.
The men’s 4x2oo relay promises to be a thriller with Korea leading the prelims in 7:12.84, 0.12 ahead of China (7:12.96) with Japan clocking 7:13.38.