Teen Titan comes of age

Kang Jing, manager of the swimming club, recalls seeing Yu Zidi, then about 10, quietly doing handicrafts on her own.

"Handicrafts like that require a great deal of patience and concentration. At that time, I felt that this child had a calmness beyond her age," Kang said.

"She told me that she gets nervous before races, just like anyone else, but the nervousness doesn't affect her performance. Being able to turn nervousness and anxiety into motivation is not something every child can do. For an athlete, strong mental qualities can be a talent, too," said one of the club's coaches.

At the 2025 World Aquatics Championships in Singapore, at age 12, Yu Zidi became the youngest medalist in the history of the competition, helping China to bronze in the women's 4x200 freestyle relay. She also reached three individual finals.

Yu Zidi isn't just an Asian champion swimmer, of course. She is also a ninth-grade student at Baoding No 17 Middle School, where an individualized curriculum helps her keep up with her studies while balancing the demands of elite training and competition.

Beyond the pool, she said she wants to be "a child who is very much her age".

But, at the tender age of 13, Yu Zidi is already being measured against Olympic champions and world records.

She, however, remains focused on something much smaller and more immediate — the next race, the next technical detail, the next chance to swim a little faster.