Mixed 4x100m medley relay world record ends controversial China swim championships
- Xu Jiayu, Zhang Yufei, Yan Zibei and Yang Junxuan smash past mark set by US team at 2017 worlds
- Zhang adds world record to Asian record set at nationals in Qingdao
China’s controversial National Swimming Championships have ended with a new world record for the mixed 4x100m medley relay.
The Qingdao event, which concluded on Friday, made headlines for swimmers missing out on finals despite qualifying in the pool, because of pre-competition physical tests.
There was no such controversy on the final day when a team of Xu Jiayu, Zhang Yufei, Yan Zibei and Yang Junxuan smashed the previous record time.
The quartet completed their medley in 3 minutes, 38.41 seconds – 0.15 seconds faster than the previous best set by a US team made up of Matt Grevers, Lilly King, Caeleb Dressel and Simone Manuel at the 2017 World Championships in Budapest.
Two-time world champion Xu led off with the backstroke, Yan followed with breaststroke before Zhang, who set an Asian record in the women’s 100m butterfly in midweek, and then Yang’s freestyle.
