Day 5 of the 2025 National Swimming Championships: 12-year-old Yu Zidi wins the 200m butterfly, capturing global attention in the swimming world; meanwhile, 31-year-old Wang Shun claims the 200m individual medley title, clocking the fifth-fastest time ever recorded.

Yu Zidi's performance has drawn significant attention from the global swimming community. The renowned U.S.-based swimming publication SwimSwam conducted a side-by-side comparison of Yu Zidi's impressive results: her winning time not only surpassed the U.S. national record for the 11- to 12-year-old age group (2:15.02) but also eclipsed the national record for boys in the same age bracket (2:11.07). Even more remarkably, her time exceeded the longstanding U.S. girls' record for the 13- to 14-year-old category, set back in 1979 and still standing today at 2:07.01.

Yu Zidi ranks 14th in the world this season, a position that would have earned her 4th place at the 2023 Fukuoka World Championships (where third-place finisher Regan Smith clocked 2:06.58). At the 2024 Doha World Championships, she’d likely secure the gold medal outright (with the winning time of 2:07.35), while at the 2024 Paris Olympics, she’d still manage to claim 4th place—just behind bronze medalist Zhang Yufei, who finished in 2:05.09.

The women's 200m butterfly world record, set by Liu Zige at the 2009 National Games with a time of 2:01.81, is widely regarded as the most challenging world record to break.

Previously, Zidi won the silver medal in the women's 200m individual medley, earning herself a spot at the World Championships.

In the men's 100m freestyle final, Pan Zhanle, the world record holder (46.40) and representing Zhejiang, effortlessly clinched the gold medal with a time of 47.77 seconds—becoming the only swimmer to meet the World Championships A standard (48.34). This victory also marks Pan Zhanle's fifth gold medal at this year's championships.

Wang Haoyu finished as the runner-up with a time of 48.36 seconds, just 0.02 seconds short of the A standard. Liu Wudi took third place with a time of 48.42 seconds.

In the women's 50m backstroke final, Wan Letian swam a time of 27.56 seconds to claim the gold medal. Meanwhile, 14-year-old Lu Xingchen from Zhejiang finished second with 28.01 seconds, and Qian Xin'an took bronze in 28.10 seconds. All three swimmers achieved the World Championships A-standard time.

In the men's 200m individual medley final, 31-year-old veteran Wang Shun, born on February 11, 1994, clinched the gold medal with a time of 1:56.58, easily meeting the World Championships A standard (1:59.05). Xie Yichen took home the silver with 1:59.44, while Chen Nuo secured bronze in 2:00.73. Notably, in September 2011, 17-year-old Wang Shun first claimed the national title in this event, stepping onto the top spot for the very first time.

Like Xu JiaYu, Wang Shun is also embarking on his fifth Olympic journey during the 2028 Los Angeles Olympic cycle (having previously competed in 2012 London, 2016 Rio, 2020 Tokyo, and 2024 Paris). At the 2016 Rio Olympics, Wang Shun clinched the bronze medal in the men’s 200m individual medley; four years later, at the 2020 Tokyo Games, he claimed gold in the same event, becoming China’s second-ever male Olympic swimming champion after Sun Yang. Fast forward to the 2024 Paris Olympics, where, as the oldest member of the Chinese delegation, Wang Shun once again showcased his resilience by winning the bronze medal in the 200m individual medley. From Phelps to Seto Daiya and now Marcell, Wang Shun has consistently held his own against generations of world-class swimmers, cementing his status as a true legend of the sport.

At the 2016 Rio Olympics, Wang Shun won the bronze medal, while Phelps claimed the gold, and Japan's Kosuke Hagino took home the silver.

The Singapore World Championships will also mark Wang Shun’s eighth appearance at the event (2011, 2013, 2015, 2017, 2019, 2022, 2023). At the 2015 Kazan World Championships, Wang Shun earned his first-ever World Championship bronze medal, and to date, he has accumulated a total of four World Championship medals—all of them bronze.

Wang Shun's time ranks as the fifth-fastest in the world this year, with the top spot held by 19-year-old Japanese swimmer Tomoyuki Matsushita, who clocked a stunning 1:56.35 at the national championships on March 22. At the impressive age of 31, Wang Shun continues to maintain such exceptional form, setting a remarkable example for Chinese athletes of how to sustain an incredibly long athletic career.

The schedule for May 22 is as follows: