Chinese OLY Trials: Bingjie Rattles 400 Free Asian Record, Yuanhui Disqualified

CHINESE OLYMPIC TRIALS #1

• Friday, April 30th – Saturday, May 8th
• Qingdao, China
• Primary Olympic Qualifier
• LCM (50m)
• Results via Asian Media
• Day 1 Finals Recap

After prelims this morning, Li Bingjie and Wang Jianjiahe were set to have a tight battle in the 400 freestyle during the second finals session of the Chinese Olympic Trials on Sunday.

As a reminder, these Trials have their prelims at night with the finals the following morning, following the timing of the actual Olympic Games.

Chinese National Record-holder and Asian Record-holder Binjie went off in the finals heat, dominating the race with a time of 4:02.36, within .61 of her lifetime best. Both Binjie and 2nd place finisher Tang Muhan beat the Fina ‘A’ standard, as did Jianjiahe who finished in 3rd place.

This time ranks Bingjie as the 3rd fastest female 400 freestyler in the world this season. Jianjiahe’s 4:03.02 from December ranks her 4th:

Notably, it appears that Fu Yuanhui, the 2016 Rio bronze medalist in the 100 backstroke, was disqualified during the 100 back semifinal due to a false start. It is not clear from the results yet as to where she finished in the race. Yuanhui still holds the Chinese National Record in the event with her time of 58.72 from the 2017 Chinese Championships in Qindao.

Chinese National Record-holder  Zhang Yufei came within .11 of her lifetime best 100 fly time to beat the Fina ‘A’ cut and win the event during the 2nd finals session of the Chinese Olympic Trials. While Yufei set ambitious goals for herself at this meet, aiming to break Sarah Sjostrom‘s World Record of 55.48 during prelims, her 55.72 finals swim was a strong race for Yufei and the fastest time she posted all weekend.

Since her National Record-setting swim occurred in September 2020, it still counts as part of this season’s results and ranks her 1st in the world this season. Even without that swim, her performance on Sunday was the fastest women’s 100 meter fly in the world this year:

Yan Zibei won the men’s 100 breaststroke final by undercutting the Fina ‘A’ cut by .68. He finished with a time of 59.25 which was right on the time he swam yesterday during the semifinals. His season-best time of 58.73 from last September ranks him 4th in the world this season:

Top 3 Finishers in Each Event:

Women’s 100 Butterfly – Final

• Fina ‘A’ cut: 57.92
• Chinese National Record: 55.62 – Zhang Yufei (2020)

1. Zhang Yufei – 55.73
2. Yu Yiting – 58.13
3. Wang Yichun –58.65

Men’s 200 Freestyle – Semifinal

• Fina ‘A’ cut: 1:47.02
• Chinese National Record: 1:44.39 – Sun Yang (2017)

1. Zhang Ziyang – 1:47.92
2. Wang Shun – 1:47.96
3. Hong Jinquan – 1:48.09

Women’s 100 Breaststroke – Semifinal

• Fina ‘A’ cut: 1:07.07
• Chinese National Record: 1:05.32 – Ji Liping (2009)

1. Yu Jingyao – 1:06.77
2. Tang Qianting – 1:07.02
3. Yang Chang – 1:08.26

Men’s 100 Breaststroke – Final

• Fina ‘A’ cut: 59.93
• Chinese National Record: 58.63 – Yan Zibei (2019)

1. Yan Zibei – 59.25
2. Sun Jiajun – 1:00.24
3. Yu Zongda – 1:00.71

Women’s 400 Freestyle – Final

• Fina ‘A’ cut: 4:07.90
• Chinese National Record: 4:01.75 – Li Binjie (2017)

1. Li Bingjie – 4:02.36
2. Tang Muhan – 4:05.15
3. Wang Jianjiahe – 4:05.68

Men’s 100 Backstroke – Semifinal

• Fina ‘A’ cut: 53.85
• Chinese National Record: 51.86 –Xu Jiayu (2018)

1. Xu Jiayu – 53.15
2. Li Guangyuan – 55.05
3. Hu Yixuan – 55.49

Women’s 100 Backstroke – Semifinal

• Fina ‘A’ cut: 1:00.25
• Chinese National Record: 58.72 – Fu Yuanhui (2017)

1. Peng Xuwei – 59.86
2. Chen Jie – 1:00.51
3. Wang Xueer – 1:01.28