Zhang Yufei
Zhang in 2021
Personal information
National teamChina
Born (1998-04-19) 19 April 1998
Xuzhou, Jiangsu, China
Height1.76 m (5 ft 9 in) [1]
Weight62 kg (137 lb)
Sport
SportSwimming
StrokesFreestyle, butterfly
ClubJiangsu Swimming Team[2]
CoachCui Dengrong
Medal record
Women's swimming
Representing  China
Event 1st 2nd 3rd
Olympic Games 2 2 0
World Championships (LC) 2 1 8
World Championships (SC) 1 1 4
Asian Games 9 1 0
Summer Youth Olympics 4 2 0
Total 18 7 12
Women's swimming
Representing  China
Olympic Games
Gold medal – first place2020 Tokyo200 m butterfly
Gold medal – first place2020 Tokyo4×200 m freestyle
Silver medal – second place2020 Tokyo100 m butterfly
Silver medal – second place2020 Tokyo4×100 m mixed medley
World Championships (LC)
Gold medal – first place2023 Fukuoka100 m butterfly
Gold medal – first place2023 Fukuoka4×100 m mixed medley
Silver medal – second place2023 Fukuoka50 m butterfly
Bronze medal – third place2015 Kazan 200 m butterfly
Bronze medal – third place2015 Kazan4×200 m freestyle
Bronze medal – third place2017 Budapest4×100 m mixed medley
Bronze medal – third place2022 Budapest50 m butterfly
Bronze medal – third place2022 Budapest100 m butterfly
Bronze medal – third place2022 Budapest200 m butterfly
Bronze medal – third place2023 Fukuoka50 m freestyle
Bronze medal – third place2023 Fukuoka4×100 m freestyle
World Championships (SC)
Gold medal – first place2021 Abu Dhabi200 m butterfly
Silver medal – second place2018 Hangzhou4×100 m medley
Bronze medal – third place2014 Doha400 m freestyle
Bronze medal – third place2016 Windsor200 m butterfly
Bronze medal – third place2021 Abu Dhabi4 x 100 m medley
Bronze medal – third place2022 Melbourne50 m butterfly
Asian Games
Gold medal – first place 2014 Incheon 4×100 m freestyle
Gold medal – first place 2018 Jakarta 200 m butterfly
Gold medal – first place 2018 Jakarta 4×100 m mixed medley
Gold medal – first place 2022 Hangzhou 50 m freestyle
Gold medal – first place 2022 Hangzhou 50 m butterfly
Gold medal – first place 2022 Hangzhou 100 m butterfly
Gold medal – first place 2022 Hangzhou 200 m butterfly
Gold medal – first place 2022 Hangzhou 4×100 m freestyle
Gold medal – first place 2022 Hangzhou 4×100 m mixed medley
Silver medal – second place 2018 Jakarta 100 m butterfly
Summer Youth Olympics
Gold medal – first place 2014 Nanjing 4×100 m freestyle
Gold medal – first place 2014 Nanjing 4×100 m medley
Gold medal – first place 2014 Nanjing 4×100 m mixed freestyle
Gold medal – first place 2014 Nanjing 4×100 m mixed medley
Silver medal – second place 2014 Nanjing 100 m butterfly
Silver medal – second place 2014 Nanjing 200 m butterfly
World University Games
Gold medal – first place2021 Chengdu 50 m freestyle
Gold medal – first place2021 Chengdu100 m freestyle
Gold medal – first place2021 Chengdu50 m butterfly
Gold medal – first place2021 Chengdu100 m butterfly
Gold medal – first place2021 Chengdu4×100 m freestyle
Gold medal – first place2021 Chengdu4×200 m freestyle
Gold medal – first place2021 Chengdu4×100 m medley
Gold medal – first place2021 Chengdu4×100 m mixed freestyle
Gold medal – first place2021 Chengdu4×100 m mixed medley
Military World Games
Gold medal – first place2019 Wuhan100 m butterfly
Gold medal – first place2019 Wuhan4×100 m freestyle
Gold medal – first place2019 Wuhan4×200 m freestyle
Gold medal – first place2019 Wuhan4×100 m medley
Gold medal – first place2019 Wuhan4×100 m mixed medley
Silver medal – second place2019 Wuhan50 m butterfly
Bronze medal – third place2019 Wuhan50 m freestyle
Bronze medal – third place2019 Wuhan200 m butterfly

Zhang Yufei (Chinese: 张雨霏; pinyin: Zhāng Yǔfēi; born 19 April 1998) is a Chinese competitive swimmer who specializes in sprint freestyle and butterfly events.[2] Considered one of the most promising swimmers in the international scene, she produced a tally of thirty-seven medals (eighteen gold medals, seven silver medals, and twelve bronze medals) in her swimming career, spanning the Youth Olympics, Asian Games, World Championships and the Summer Olympics. In 2023, she was named as the most valuable player in the women's division, in the 2022 Asian Games in Hangzhou.[3]

Career

Born in Xuzhou (Jiangsu), Zhang began swimming at the age of three partly because of the encouragement and influence of her mother, who acted as her personal coach. Two years later, she started training professionally as a member of the Jiangsu Swimming Team, and eventually held numerous records for her age group. As more records followed, Zhang's rapid improvement culminated on her major debut in an international sporting event at the age of fourteen, when she beat 2008 Olympic champion Liu Zige for the gold medal in the 200 m butterfly at the 2012 FINA World Cup meet in Beijing.[4] The following year, she was selected for the China's national swimming team.[5]

Zhang's international debut came as a member of the host nation China at the 2014 Summer Youth Olympics in Nanjing, where she achieved a total of five medals: three golds and two silver. Zhang started off the competition with a powerful butterfly split of 58.56 in the girls' 4 × 100 m medley relay that tremendously helped her Chinese foursome break the junior world record (4:03.58) for the gold medal. On the same night, she managed a strong swim to take the silver in the 200 m butterfly with a time of 2:08.22, finishing farther behind Hungary's Liliána Szilágyi by less than two seconds.[6] In the girls' 4 × 100 m freestyle relay, Zhang posted a third leg split in 54.09 until her host nation's foursome celebrated again with another relay victory in 3:41.19.[7][8] On 22 August, Zhang relegated to her second silver in the 100 m butterfly at 57.95, narrowly losing the race again to Szilagyi by almost three tenths of a second. Despite missing out her first individual gold, Zhang and her teammates Li Guangyuan, He Yun, and Yu Hexin powered their stretch to grab another relay title for the Chinese squad in the mixed 4 × 100 m medley (3:49.33).[9]

Zhang (right) at the 2015 World Aquatics Championships

One month later, at the 2014 Asian Games in Incheon, South Korea, Zhang set a 54.10 split on the third leg to put the Chinese squad ahead to a marvelous victory in the women's 4 × 100 m freestyle relay, with a time of 3:37.25.[10]

At the 2015 FINA World Championships in Kazan, Russia, Zhang swam her two finals on the fifth night of the competition with forty minutes in between. First, she lowered her own junior world record with 2:06.51 to take home her individual bronze in the 200 m butterfly.[11][12] Forty minutes later, Zhang set a third leg split of 1:58.73 to deliver the Chinese foursome a bronze medal in the women's 4 × 200 m freestyle relay with a combined time of 7:49.10.[11]

On 22 August 2018, Zhang won the Women's 200 m butterfly gold medal at the 18th Asian Games in Jakarta, Indonesia with 2:06.61.[13]

On 25 July 2021, Zhang went 55.64 to win silver in the Women's 100 m butterfly at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics behind Maggie Macneil, who went 55.59.

On 28 July 2021, Zhang broke the Olympic record and the world record in the Women's 200 m butterfly and the Women's 4 × 200 m freestyle relay respectively, winning the gold medals in both events.[14]

On 24 July 2023, Zhang won the women's 100 m butterfly gold medal at the 2023 Fukuoka World Aquatics Championships.[15]

At the 19th Asian Games in Hangzhou, Zhang topped the podium in the women's individual 50 m freestyle,[16] 50 m butterfly,[17] 100 m butterfly[18] and 200 m butterfly,[19] while also contributing to her national women's 4 × 100 m freestyle relay and mixed 4 × 100 m medley relay gold medals, securing 6 golds in all.

Personal bests

As of July 30, 2023[20]

Long course (50-meter pool)

Event Time Meet Date Note(s)
50 m freestyle 24.15 2023 World Aquatics Championships July 30, 2023
100 m freestyle 52.90 2020 Chinese National Swimming Championships
2021 Chinese National Swimming Championships		 September 27, 2020
May 4, 2021		 NR
200 m freestyle 1.57.22 2021 Chinese National Swimming Championships May 2, 2021
400 m freestyle 4.07.72 2015 Chinese National Swimming Championships April 9, 2015
800 m freestyle 8.51.91 2012 Chinese National Swimming Championships September 22, 2012
50 m butterfly 25.05 2023 World Aquatics Championships July 29, 2023 AS,NR
100 m butterfly 55.62 2020 Chinese National Swimming Championships September 29, 2020 AS,NR
200 m butterfly 2.03.86 2020 Summer Olympics July 29, 2021 OR

Short course (25-meter pool)

Event Time Meet Date Note(s)
50 m freestyle 23.76 2022 World Championships December 15, 2022 NR
100 m freestyle 53.21 2022 Chinese National Swimming Championships October 29, 2022
200 m freestyle 1.55.26 2016 World Cup September 30, 2016
400 m freestyle 3.59.51 2014 World Championships December 5, 2014
50 m butterfly 24.71 2022 World Championships December 14, 2022 AS,NR
100 m butterfly 55.46 2022 Chinese National Swimming Championships October 29, 2022
200 m butterfly 2.03.01 2021 World Championships December 17, 2021
100 m individual medley 1.08.80 2017 World Cup October 5, 2017
400 m individual medley 4.46.30 2014 World Cup October 25, 2014

Key: NR = National Record ; AS = Asian Record ; OR = Olympic Record

See also

References

  1. ↑ https://info.hangzhou2022.cn/en/results/swimming/athlete-profile-n2008023-zhang-yufei.htm
  2. 1 2 "Zhang Yufei". Incheon 2014. Archived from the original on 27 September 2014. Retrieved 27 September 2014.
  3. ↑ Race, Retta (2023-10-09). "Zhang Yufei & Qin Haiyang Both Named MVP Of 19th Asian Games". SwimSwam. Retrieved 2023-10-09.
  4. ↑ Liu, Weiguo (6 November 2012). "Teenage Swimmer Defeats Olympic Champion". All-China Women's Federation. Retrieved 12 August 2015.
  5. ↑ "98年江苏姑娘，3岁学游泳，曾因太美被国家队教练禁止谈恋爱原文網址". 16 August 2017. Retrieved 12 July 2021.
  6. ↑ "Youth Olympic Games: Liliana Szilagyi Vaults to 3rd in World in 200 Fly". Swimming World Magazine. 18 August 2014. Retrieved 23 September 2014.
  7. ↑ "Youth Olympic Games: Sprints Take Center Stage on Fight Night". Swimming World Magazine. 21 August 2014. Retrieved 23 September 2014.
  8. ↑ "YOG: China adds two swimming gold medals". Xinhua. 19 August 2014. Archived from the original on August 23, 2014. Retrieved 23 September 2014.
  9. ↑ "Youth Olympic Games: World Junior Record Bonanza on Final Night". Swimming World Magazine. 22 August 2014. Retrieved 12 August 2015.
  10. ↑ "Japanese Men Turn In Fabulous Night of Swimming at Asian Games". Swimming World Magazine. Retrieved 21 September 2014.
  11. 1 2 "Roundup: Chinese swimming shows strength at Kazan worlds". China Internet Information Center. 9 August 2015. Retrieved 10 August 2015.
  12. ↑ "Natsumi Hoshi Captures 200 Fly World Title at 2015 FINA World Championships". Swimming World Magazine. 6 August 2015. Retrieved 12 August 2015.
  13. ↑ "Zhang Yufei wins 200m butterfly at Asian Games". Xinhuanet News. 2018-08-22. Retrieved 27 Aug 2018.
  14. ↑ "China wins women's 4x200 freestyle relay with world record". Japan Today. Retrieved 2021-07-29. China's Zhang had earlier won gold in the 200m butterfly... China took the title after holding off a late charge by America's Katie Ledecky, who threatened an incredible comeback during the final leg... The team of Yang Junxuan, Zhang Yufei, Li Bingjie and Tang Muhan touched in 7 minutes, 40.33 seconds ahead of the United States (7:40.73) and Australia (7:41.29).
  15. ↑ "World Aquatics Championships 2023: Zhang Yufei wins tight women's 100m fly for first world title". olympics.com. Retrieved 24 July 2023.
  16. ↑ "Asian Games 2023: Zhang Yufei storms to fifth Hangzhou gold in women's 50m free". olympics.com. Retrieved 28 September 2023.
  17. ↑ "Asian Games 2023: Zhang Yufei bows out of Hangzhou by tying Ikee Rikako's record of 6 swimming gold medals". olympics.com. Retrieved 29 September 2023.
  18. ↑ "Asian Games 2023: Zhang Yufei eases to women's 100m butterfly, 4x100m mixed medley relay in record times". olympics.com. Retrieved 28 September 2023.
  19. ↑ "China rule in pool and beyond on first day of Asian Games". Dawn. Retrieved 25 September 2023.
  20. ↑ "FINA personal best results".
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Zhang Yufei.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.