China News Service, Beijing, February 12th. On the 11th local time, the first day of swimming competition at the Doha World Swimming Championships ended. Pan Zhanle, Ji Xinjie, Zhang Zhanshuo and Wang Haoyu won the men's 4×100m freestyle relay, winning the Chinese team's first gold medal in swimming at this World Championships. Pan Zhanle swam 46.80 seconds in the first leg of the final, breaking the men's 100-meter freestyle world record.
Pan Zhanle, who broke the 47-second barrier at the Hangzhou Asian Games, is one of the most watched athletes at this World Championships. In the men's 4×100m freestyle relay final, Pan Zhanle, who led the way, showed an amazing performance, establishing a lead for his teammates with a record-breaking 46.80 seconds. Veteran Ji Xinjie further expanded his advantage in the second leg. Zhang Zhanshuo and Wang Haoyu also performed strongly. The four finally won the gold medal with a lead of 1 second ahead of the runner-up. Pan Zhanle's time of 46.80 seconds broke the world record of 46.86 seconds set by Romanian star Popovich at the 2022 European Championships.
After the game, Pan Zhanle said that judging from their paper strength, the four of them may not be able to stand on the podium, but athletes must have a fighting spirit and dare to attack for the gold medal. Veteran Ji Xinjie, who returned to the competition, believes that the four of them managed to get rid of distracting thoughts and stay focused on the court, so they were able to win the gold medal.
In the women's 400-meter freestyle final held on the same day, Olympic champion and Chinese player Li Bingjie won the silver medal in 4:01.62. 16-year-old Chinese teenager Yang Peiqi ranked sixth. The championship was won by New Zealander Fairweather. Li Bingjie is the only Olympic champion among the Chinese swimming team members in this World Championships. She will also participate in the women's 200-meter freestyle and women's 1,500-meter freestyle competitions.
British breaststroke star Adam Peaty, who returned to the World Championships, ranked first in the men's 100m breaststroke semi-finals with a time of 58.60 seconds. Whether this multiple breaststroke record holder can win another gold medal at this World Championships is one of the highlights of the competition.
On the 12th local time, the Doha World Swimming Championships will usher in the finals of four events: men's 100-meter breaststroke, women's 100-meter butterfly, men's 50-meter butterfly, and women's 200-meter individual medley. (over)