Olympic champion Ye qualifies for Paris 2024
London Olympic champion Ye Shiwen claimed the women's 200m breaststroke gold medal in China's national swimming championships on Wednesday, qualifying for the upcoming Paris Olympics after an 8-year wait.
Ye Shiwen of China competes during the Women's 200m Breaststroke Final of Swimming at the 19th Asian Games in Hangzhou, east China's Zhejiang Province, Sept. 28, 2023. (Xinhua/Huang Zongzhi)
Ye won the race in 2:22.55, bettering the Olympic qualifying time 2:23.91. Tang Qianting took the silver and Zhu Leiju got the bronze.
"I am very satisfied with the result, which is better than I expected," Ye said.
Ye impressed the world by winning two golds in London Olympics at the age of 16. She retired in 2017 after an unsuccessful Rio Olympics before returning to the pool in 2019. She failed to qualify for the Tokyo Olympics and announced retirement again. Ye made her second comeback in 2022 and won a gold medal in her hometown at the Hangzhou Asian Games.
The national swimming championships would be her last chance to book a place for Paris and considering her age, maybe her last chance to get an Olympic ticket.
Ye ranked only 11th and failed to qualify for the 400m medley three days ago, which she said was such a "huge blow".
"I had considered quitting this event after finishing the 400m medley, it was the fans' support that gave me the determination to carry on," the 28-year-old added.
Olympic champion Zhang Yufei won the women's 200m butterfly in 2:06.40, claiming her third gold medal in the event. Chen Luying placed second and Gong Zhenqi ranked third.
"The result is OK, but I am not satisfied with it. I tried my best," Zhang said.
World champion Xu Jiayu claimed men's 200m backstroke gold in 1:57.70, followed by Wang Yutian and Tao Guannan.
Related articles
Belarus launches nuclear drills a day after Russia announces them, with Ukraine in mind
Belarus on Tuesday launched drills involving missiles and warplanes capable of carrying tactical nuc2024-05-08Israel must stop settler attacks on Palestinians, UN office says
The U.N. human rights office called on Israeli security forces to immediately end their active parti2024-05-08Living Nostradamus warns future epidemics could come from AI laboratories
A man who was dubbed the 'living Nostradamus' issued a warning to humanity after his first 2024 pred2024-05-08China's Qingming holiday box office hits record high
China's box office revenue during the three-day Qingming Festival holiday that concluded on Satu2024-05-08Iran and the UN nuclear agency are still discussing how to implement a 2023 deal on inspections
JERUSALEM (AP) — Iran and the United Nations’ nuclear watchdog are still negotiating over how to imp2024-05-08Chongqing springs to life on summer nights
Chongqing, a mountainous metropolis in Southwest China known for its spicy food and hot weather, now2024-05-08
atest comment