Chinese swimmers earned two bronze medals at the World Aquatics Championships in Singapore on Thursday.

In the women's 50-meter backstroke final, Wan Letian finished third in 27.30 seconds, behind American competitors Katharine Berkoff and Regan Smith, who claimed gold and silver, respectively.

"I've overcome a mental hurdle," Wan said. "I wasn't very confident before, but standing on the podium at an international event has given me courage and helped me identify areas for improvement. I hope to go further in future competitions."

In the women's 4×200m freestyle relay final, the Chinese squad of Liu Yaxin, Yang Peiqi, Yu Yiting, and Li Bingjie placed third behind Australia and the USA. Li, who previously took silver in the 200m and 400m freestyle events, anchored the final leg.

"This was my first time swimming the anchor leg," Li said. "My teammates swam really well, so I just wanted to fight for the best possible result."

The men's 100m freestyle final was one of the most anticipated races of the day. Romania's David Popovici clocked a blistering 46.51 seconds, securing gold while also setting a new World Championships record. The USA's Jack Alexy snagged silver, and Australia's Kyle Chalmers bagged bronze.

Popovici's time is the second-fastest ever posted in the event, just behind the world record of 46.40 seconds set by China's Pan Zhanle at the 2024 Paris Summer Olympics.

"I'd give myself a 10 tonight," Popovici said. "I'm not the kind of person who usually says something is perfect, but I think today really was."

In the men's 200m individual medley final, France's Leon Marchand, who broke the world record in the semifinals, won gold in 1:53.68. The USA's Shaine Casas collected silver, with Hungary's Hubert Kos picking up bronze. China's Wang Shun, the Tokyo Summer Olympics winner in this event, touched the wall seventh.

Reflecting on his eighth appearance at the World Championships since 2011, Wang noted the rise in competition. "Especially at this edition, you can feel the level has risen a lot – perhaps because everyone refocused after the Olympics."

Canada's Summer McIntosh set a new World Championships record in the women's 200m butterfly, winning gold in 2:01.99. The USA's Smith and Australia's Elizabeth Dekkers rounded out the podium. China's 12-year-old sensation Yu Zidi narrowly missed out on a medal after taking fourth place.

In semifinal action, China's Qin Haiyang reached the men's 200m breaststroke final with the eighth-fastest time. Compatriot Dong Zhihao ranked 15th and did not advance.

In the women's 100m freestyle, Cheng Yujie qualified for the final with the fifth-fastest time, while Wu Qingfeng placed 15th. In the women's 200m breaststroke, Lyu Qinyao finished 10th and did not move on. Yu Jingming failed to progress out of the men's 200m backstroke heats.