Zhang Yufei of China competes during the women's 200m butterfly final at the Hangzhou Asian Games on Sept 24, 2023. (PHOTO / XINHUA)

JINAN, China - Olympic champion Zhang Yufei suffered a narrow defeat at China's national swimming championships here on Wednesday when she finished second in 2:08.38 in the women's 200m butterfly final.

Chen Luying was 0.02 seconds ahead of Zhang and grabbed the gold medal.

Despite the result, Zhang said she was not disappointed as she was just recovering from a flu.

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"I used to fear losing, especially in front of my supporters. But I have learned from this year's experiences that losing doesn't matter as long as you can learn from it," said the 25-year-old.

Zhang was named the Most Valuable Player (MVP) at the Hangzhou Asian Games, where she clinched six titles across her signature events of butterfly, freestyle and relays.

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Also on Thursday, Pan Zhanle captured the men's 100m freestyle title in 47.60 seconds, Fei Liwei won the men's 1500m freestyle gold in 14:57.47.