Xu Jiayu of China competes during the Men's 4x100m Medley Relay Final of Swimming at the 19th Asian Games in Hangzhou, east China's Zhejiang province, Sept 26, 2023. (PHOTO / XINHUA)

JINAN, China - World champion Xu Jiayu claimed the men's 100m backstroke title in 52.61 seconds at the 2023 Chinese Swimming Championships here on Monday.

Xu was nearly two seconds ahead of his nearest rival, though it was 0.38 seconds behind his gold medal-winning performance at the Hangzhou Asian Games two months ago.

"I reserved my strength during the heats, but not in the final. I hope to make more progress and achieve better results in the future," said Xu.

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Olympic champion Zhang Yufei clocked 24.58 seconds to win the women's 50m freestyle, followed by national teammate Yang Junxuan in 24.85.

"For me, there's a lot to improve," said Yang. "I will pay more attention to details and work closely with my coach in training."

Yang Chang won the women's 100m breaststroke final, while London Olympic champion Ye Shiwen ranked third.

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"I am satisfied with my performance today. I enjoyed the swim very much," said the 27-year-old Ye.