Japan's Shin Ohashi sets world record in 200m breaststroke at Asian Games

Japan's 17 year old Shin Ohashi set a world record in the men's 200-metre breaststroke at the Asian Games yesterday (24 September), clocking 2 minutes, 4.83 seconds.

Ohashi broke the previous record of 2:05.48, set by China's Qin Haiyang at the 2023 world swimming championships in Fukuoka, Japan.

"I wasn't expecting to post a time like that," Ohashi said. "So I was really happy. At the same time, I felt a huge sense of relief."

Kyrgyzstan's Denis Petrashov finished second in 2:08.67, while South Korea's Cho Sung-jae took bronze in 2:08.76.

Ohashi, who already held the fastest time in the event this year at 2:06.59, has emerged as the swimmer to beat in the breaststroke this season.

"I may be the world-record holder now, but the level of competition around the world will keep rising," he said. "I don't want to be left behind. Instead, I want to be the one who sets the pace, so I'll keep working hard in training."

Ohashi's record briefly shifted attention away from China's 13-year-old swimming sensation Yu Zidi, who has won three gold medals at the Games in the 200-metre butterfly, 200-metre individual medley and 400-metre individual medley. She will not compete in any more individual events.

Ohashi also won the men's 400-metre individual medley earlier this week, finishing in 4:07.02. The world record in the event is 4:02.50, held by France's Leon Marchand, who won four gold medals at the 2024 Paris Olympics.

Ohashi said his strongest performance on Thursday came in the final 50 metres, when he managed to maintain his pace instead of slowing down.

"I think my biggest strength is my ability to keep my swimming compact and maintain a good tempo," he said. "Ultimately, I think my biggest goal is to win an Olympic gold medal."

Marchand has been among the presenters handing out medals during the Games. Swimming events are being held at the Olympic pool in Tokyo.

At 1.69 metres tall, Ohashi is not physically imposing compared with many elite swimmers. Earlier this year, he also broke Japan's national record in the 100-metre breaststroke, a mark previously held by four-time Olympic gold medallist and three-time world champion Kosuke Kitajima.

China continues gold rush in pool

China remained dominant in the swimming events despite Ohashi's world record, winning four of the seven gold medals contested Thursday.

After five days of competition, with swimming scheduled to conclude Friday, China has won 25 gold medals from 34 events.

China's Thursday winners were Wu Qingfeng in the women's 50-metre freestyle in 23.98 seconds, Zhang Zhanshuo in the men's 800-metre freestyle in 7:42.49, the men's 4x100-metre freestyle relay team in 3:10.60 and the women's 4x200-metre freestyle relay team in 7:49.37.

Japan also won gold through Kotomi Kato, who took the women's 200-metre breaststroke in 2:22.57.

The other gold medal went to Bahrain's Mikhail Arkhangelskiy, who won the men's 50-metre butterfly in 22.91 seconds. Born in Russia, Arkhangelskiy has competed for Florida State University.