Overview

• Yu Zidi finished fourth in the 200m individual medley with a time of 2:09.21, missing bronze by 0.06 seconds and eclipsing U.S. girls’ 11-12 national age-group records by over nine seconds.
• She placed fourth again in the 200m butterfly with a 2:06.43 swim, coming within 0.31 seconds of a podium spot in her second world championships final.
• Under current World Aquatics rules, athletes under 14 may compete if they achieve stringent A-standard qualifying times, a provision Yu uniquely triggered.
• Executive director Brent Nowicki admitted surprise that a 12-year-old could meet the A standards and indicated the federation may tighten age eligibility criteria following her performances.
• Experts including German swimming director Christian Hansmann and French swimmer Lilou Ressencourt cautioned that elite competition poses significant mental and physical challenges for a preteen athlete.