Chinese 12-year-old Yu Zidi has become a sensation at the World Aquatics Championships after missing the podium by only 0.06 seconds in the women¡¯s 200-meter individual medley in Singapore on Monday, but she is keen not to get caught up in the hype.
Yu, who shaved over a second off her personal best to finish in two minutes, 9.21 seconds, received high praise from fellow competitors but said she was focusing only on her training.
¡°I will try to get on the podium. But I feel like that¡¯s probably impossible. Still, I want to give it a shot. I was one step short today, so I will keep working hard,¡± Yu told CCTV.
American silver medalist Alex Walsh said Yu has a bright future.
¡°She¡¯s obviously phenomenally talented at such a young age, and I think it¡¯ll be interesting to see how she takes this meet and translates it into the future swims,¡± Walsh said.
With the media comparing her to prodigies like Canada¡¯s Summer McIntosh, who claimed gold in the race, Yu shook her head when asked if she was a genius.
¡°Not really. It¡¯s all thanks to hard training,¡± she said.
Yu is set to compete in the 200m butterfly on Wednesday, with the 400m medley to follow on Sunday.
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