Olympic champion Ye Shiwen wins first 200m breaststroke Chinese title

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Two-time Olympic champion Ye Shiwen confirmed her new specialty as she won the women's 200m breaststroke at the Chinese National Swimming Championships on Friday.

Ye, who swam to a personal best in the semifinal with a time of 2:25.32, improved on that in the final by winning her first breaststroke national title in 2:23.46. Yu Jingyao and He Yun came second and third in 2:24.61 and 2:25.18 respectively.

"I was confident that I could produce a career-high in the 200m breaststroke because I had saved my energy in the semifinal. I was a breaststroker when I was young. I am happy that I have rediscovered the interesting part of that stroke," said the 23-year-old, who also claimed victory in the 200m individual medley.

World champion Xu Jiayu overcame illness to breeze to the men's 200m backstroke title in 1:55.65, beating Li Guangyuan in 1:57.07 and Jin Yan, who swam 1:59.08.

Asian Games champion Xu Jiayu wins 200m backstroke title, March 29, 2019. /VCG Photo

"I did not feel well before the competition. I tried my best, but it was not the result I expected," Xu said.

Qin Haiyang, the national record holder in the men's 200m breaststroke, topped the field in 2:08.66, followed by Zhang Ruixuan and Yan Zibei.

"I was torn between the 200m individual medley and the 200m breaststroke since the two events clashed according to the current World Championships competition schedule. I had to make a decision and choose one event," Qin said.

After winning the 200m freestyle, Yang Junxuan swept to her second title in the women's 100m freestyle in 54.28. Team Shandong dominated the men's 4x200m freestyle, winning in 7:17.37.

Around 900 swimmers from 25 teams are competing at the meet which runs from March 24 to 31 and also serves as the qualifying tournament for the FINA Swimming World Championships in Gwangju, South Korea in July.

Source(s): Xinhua News Agency