Pooling its younger resources

With international powers pushing full steam ahead into the new Olympic cycle, China's young swimming team refuses to be left behind, aiming to step it up a notch at the Singapore worlds to bolster its LA28 ambitions.

Entering the first year of the race to the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics, the Chinese swimming program has recognized the need for urgency, speeding up its youth movement from the get-go, after watching world records in six events fall to international rivals leading up to the World Aquatics Championships.

The country has taken immediate action by sending its youngest-ever world championship squad — boasting an average age of 21 — to the Singapore meet.

Despite having set its sights on the future, Team China won't stay too humble in the present, though, with 34 swimmers, led by multiple Olympic champions, and new head coach Cui Dengrong, landing in the Southeast Asian country on Wednesday in peak condition to contest 41 individual and relay events.

The eight-day swimming competition at the worlds kicks off on Sunday at the Singapore Sports Hub with a total 42 medal events on the program. The men's 50m freestyle will be the only event without Team China participation.

"It's the first major international competition since the Paris Olympics, and our focus will be ensuring that our younger swimmers get enough tests to enable them to grow quickly," Cui, who was appointed new head coach of the national team in May, said during a recent open training session in Beijing.

"We will push for the best possible outcome, though, by preparing our swimmers as best as we can, based on scientific analysis and from the practical requirements in real competitions."

China's men's roster will be spearheaded by Olympic champion and 100m freestyle world record-holder Pan Zhanle, who has emerged an undisputed leader in the 100m sprint at just 20 years old, after clocking a jaw-dropping 46.40 sec in the Olympic final in Paris to set a new world mark and claim gold.

Pan will face a stiff challenge from Romanian superstar David Popovici, who just posted the best result so far this year with a 46.71s win, powered by an all-time fastest back-half split of 23.98s, at the U23 European championships last month. The two speedsters will first go head-to-head in the 200m final on Tuesday, before their mouthwatering clash in the 100m sprint on Thursday.

"It will be just my fourth time competing at the worlds after all. I am still in the learning process and will swim faster," said Pan, who, since September 2023, has cracked the 47-second barrier five times in official races, the most in the world.

Another key member of the roster is Qin Haiyang, a breaststroke specialist who achieved an unprecedented triple at the worlds in Fukuoka, Japan, in 2023 — winning gold in the 50m, 100m and 200m.

The current 200m world record-holder (2:05.48) looks set to come back stronger from his disappointing medal-less Olympics outing in Paris after clocking this year's world-best 58.61s in 100m at the national trials in May, and the third-ranked 200m result (2:07.44) in the Chinese spring championships in March.

With 50m and 100m world record-holder Adam Peaty of Britain having decided to skip the 2025 season, Qin has emerged as the man to beat in Singapore across all three breaststroke events.

Burning Ambition

Two veterans Wang Shun and Xu Jiayu seem rejuvenated, with impressive races at the national trials, to go for medals in the individual medley and backstroke events, respectively.

"I still have the fire burning inside, and I still want to win," said Wang, the oldest member of the team at 31, who won the country's first men's IM Olympic gold in 200m at Tokyo 2020.

On the women's side, a blend of youth and experience is expected to help Team China challenge a super competitive international field in Singapore.

With 43 international medals to her name, including 10 won at the Olympics, butterfly star Zhang Yufei remains the biggest medal hope for China in her signature 100m event.

She will face star sprinter Gretchen Walsh of the United States, who recently refreshed the world record by completing the world's first sub-55 swim in 100m fly, posting a mind-boggling 54.60s to win at the Pro Swim Series in Florida in May.

Joining Zhang in the spotlight will be junior sensation Yu Zidi, a versatile 12-year-old talent who won two golds (200m butterfly and 400m IM) at the national trials in May to become China's youngest ever qualifier for the worlds.

Having signed up to swim both IM events in Singapore, Yu Zidi will push for personal bests and to measure herself up against Canadian star Summer McIntosh, the undisputed IM queen who set new world records in both the 100m (2:05.70) and 200m (4:23.65) at the Canadian trials last month.

"For me, it's all about learning at my first world championships," said the Hebei native, whose 400m mark of 4:35.53 in May ranks fifth this year globally, and would have placed her fourth at last year's Olympics.

"I will try to put on my best performance to test myself against the best in the world."

Racing alongside the rising star in the 200m, and also hoping to challenge McIntosh, will be another IM specialist Yu Yiting, who clocked 2:08.67 at the trials to rank third this year in the event. She will also compete in the 200m butterfly.

All-around distance freestyler Li Bingjie deserves equal attention for her attempt to scoop up multiple medals from a hectic schedule, swimming four individual events from 200m to 1,500m, as well as potential relay duties.