Yu Zidi, 13, completes Asian Games hat-trick with 400m medley record

Thirteen-year-old Yu Zidi of China has won the women's 400m individual medley at the Asian Games in Nagoya.

She touched in 4 minutes 28.56 seconds on Wednesday, 23 September. That time set a new Asian Games record and completed a hat-trick of gold medals at the meet, according to BBC Sport.

The individual medley tests all four strokes in order: butterfly, backstroke, breaststroke and freestyle. Over 400 metres, that means 100 metres of each.

Yu broke open the final early and never looked back. China's Ke Wenxi took silver, 3.95 seconds behind. Japan's Mio Narita took bronze.

The margin tells its own story. Nearly four seconds in a 400m medley is clear water. The glance at the scoreboard was a formality.

The record had stood since 2014. Yu beat it by nearly 4.5 seconds.

She had already signalled her form in the morning. Yu was the fastest qualifier, 0.36 seconds ahead of Narita, after leading her heat from start to finish, according to AFP.

Her first two titles in Nagoya came in the 200m butterfly and the 200m individual medley. Both were won in Asian Games record times.

For fans, this means context as much as celebration. Yu's 4:28.56 is the fourth fastest 400m individual medley in the world this year. Only Canada's world record holder Summer McIntosh has swum faster in 2026.

That is rare company for a 13-year-old. It is also early. Junior times are a start, not a forecast.