Editorial content for the 2023 World Aquatics Championships is sponsored by FINIS, a longtime partner of Swimming World and leading innovator of suits, goggles and equipment. World Championships: China Looking Every Bit a Title Contender in Men’s 400 Medley Relay Through two days of the World Championships, the Chinese men have looked strong, highlighted by a gold medal from Qin Haiyang in the 100-meter breaststroke on Monday night. But is the best to come in the form of a relay title? An argument can be made that China is now the favorite in the 400-meter medley relay. China has never won a men’s relay at the two-biggest competitions in the sport, the Olympic Games or World Championships. But the pieces are there for a run at the end of the week, especially with the wide-open nature of the medley relay and the lack of a nation with a quartet of can’t-miss legs. Former world champion Xu Jiayu is in fine form in the 100 backstroke and will contend for a medal during the Tuesday evening session. Consequently, Xu’s presence provides China with early strength that will lead into the squad’s power, the breaststroke leg. On Monday night, Qin became the No. 2 performer in history in the 100 breaststroke, going 57.69 for the gold medal. Having a 57-point performer in the 100 breaststroke is a major advantage, especially with the dropoff evident from Qin to the rest of the breaststrokers expected to handle relay duty. Between Qin and the three-way tie for the silver medal in the 100 breast, there was a dropoff of more than a second. The opening pop of Xu and Qin is likely to provide a lead for China. On the freestyle leg, Pan Zhanle has been 47-low this year and can be expected to provide a reliable anchor leg. The question mark is the butterfly and what the Chinese will get on the third leg of the medley relay. The 100 butterfly is not scheduled until later in the week, but either Wang Changhao or Sun Jiajun will get the call. Both are seeded in the mid-51, but drops could be on the horizon given the way China has been performing. While the United States and Italy will be major factors in the push for gold, China has positioned itself as a co-favorite.
The huge advantage in breakstroke for China will be too big for other countries to catch up. It’s similar to how UK had been dominating medleys with Adam Peaty. Hence, China should win.