China’s 13-year-old swimmer Yu Zidi clocked 2:05.08 to break the Asian Games record, winning gold in the 200m butterfly; she also became the youngest medalist in the history of the 2025 World Swimming Championships

Asian Games – Aichi-Nagoya 2026 – Swimming – Tokyo Aquatics Centre, Koto, Tokyo, Japan – September 20, 2026 China’s Yu Zidi in action during the women’s 200m butterfly China’s teenage swimming sensation Yu Zidi capped a memorable debut at the Asian Games by winning gold in the 200m butterfly in a new Games record on Sunday in Japan.The 13-year-old, who turns 14 next month, clocked 2:05.08 to break the Asian Games record set three years ago by China’s Zhang Yufei at the Hangzhou Games. Zhang won the event in 2:05.57, with Yu finishing nearly half a second faster.Yu crossed the finish line 3.36 seconds ahead of Chinese swimmer Chang Mohan, who won the silver.The win gave Yu her first major individual gold medal and came in the first of three individual events she is scheduled to compete in at the Asian Games, where swimming competitions are held in Tokyo.

The youngest medalist in the history of the World Swimming Championships

Yu burst onto the world stage last year when she became the youngest medalist in the history of the World Swimming Championships. At the age of 12, she won bronze as part of the Chinese 4x200m freestyle relay team.

China’s Yu Zidi in action during the women’s 200m butterfly heat 2

She finished fourth in three individual disciplines at the World Championships and narrowly missed out on medals.This year, Yu continued her rise, including a victory over American Olympic champion Regan Smith in March.The schoolgirl, known for her pixie haircut, is expected to be among the contenders for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.Despite her success, Yu spoke about the pressure that comes with competing at such a young age.Before last year’s Chinese National Games, she said the pressure of trying to win the 400m individual medley was almost too much.Her coach encouraged her to keep going and “believe in yourself”, she said, as quoted by AFP.Yu won four medals at the National Games.Her rapid rise has also sparked a debate in swimming about the mental and physical demands of training and competing at an elite level at such a young age.According to World Aquatics rules, the minimum age for international championships is 14, although exceptions can be made for younger swimmers if they meet the qualifying standard.