13-year-old Chinese swimmer Yu Zidi makes history at Asian Games

TOKYO: China’s 13-year-old swimming sensation Yu Zidi has made a stunning Asian Games debut, winning gold in the women’s 200-metre butterfly and setting a new Games record in the process.

Competing at the Tokyo Aquatics Centre, Yu touched the wall in 2 minutes 05.08 seconds, lowering the previous Asian Games record of 2:05.57 set by fellow Chinese swimmer and Olympic champion Zhang Yufei at the 2023 Hangzhou Games.

Yu finished 3.36 seconds ahead of compatriot Chang Mohan, who claimed silver, while Japan’s Misa Okuzono took the bronze medal. The victory marked Yu’s first major individual title at the Asian Games and immediately placed her among the competition’s most talked-about young athletes.

What makes the achievement even more remarkable is Yu’s age. She will turn 14 next month, yet she has already competed successfully at the highest levels of international swimming.

In 2025, Yu became the youngest-ever swimming World Championships medallist when she helped China win bronze in the women’s 4x200m freestyle relay at the Singapore championships. She also narrowly missed individual medals in several events there, finishing fourth.

Despite breaking the Asian Games record, Yu reportedly described her performance as only “so-so” and indicated that she believes she can swim faster.

The teenager is scheduled to compete in two more individual events at the Asian Games. Her record-breaking victory has added another remarkable chapter to the rapid rise of one of swimming’s youngest stars.