OLYMPIC champion Sun Yang stormed to victory in the 200m freestyle at the 2019 Chinese national swimming championships Tuesday, while Yan Zibei set the first national record of the meet in the 50m breaststroke.

Cheered on by the local fans, Sun won convincingly in a time of 1:45.73, representing the world’s best time in the 200m freestyle so far this season. Ji Xinjie came second in a personal best time of 1:46.27, and Wang Shun finished third in 1:47.35.

“I was pretty happy with the time because I finished the 800m freestyle heat very late in the afternoon,” said Sun, who clocked a comfortable 8:06.27 to finish fourth in the 800m heat. “I took a short rest and had a shorter than ever warmup before the final. It was my second title and I was satisfied with my 400m and 200m in general. It is a good start to the year.”

World champion Xu Jiayu defended his title in the 100m backstroke in 52.27, beating teammates Li Guangyuan with 53.99, and Wang Guanbin, who clocked 54.64.

“Physically I didn’t felt in my best shape but it was a challenge for me,” Xu said.

Olympic bronze medalist Fu Yuanhui secured victory in the women’s 100m backstroke in 59.84, ahead of Chen Jie in 59.95, and Peng Xuwei with 1:00.48.(Xinhua)