Performance of the Week: Xu Jiayu Claims World Record In Short Course 100 Back

Photo Courtesy: Rob Schumacher-USA TODAY Sports

This week’s Performance of the Week goes to China’s Xu Jiayu for his world record in the men’s 100 backstroke this week at the 2018 FINA World Cup in Tokyo.

23-year old Xu Jiayu lit up the third night of finals at the Tokyo stop of the 2018 FINA World Cup, sprinting his way to a new world record in the short course meters 100 backstroke. Xu just snuck under Kliment Kolesnikov’s 2017 world record of 48.90, recording a 48.88 to clip the record by .02.

Xu was out well ahead of world record pace at the 50 meter mark, flipping in 23.76 before rocketing home in 25.12. With just a month before the start of the 2018 FINA Short Course World Championships, which will be in his home country, Xu has set himself up as a favorite in a stacked field that includes Americans Ryan Murphy and Matt Grevers.

Xu and Murphy have developed somewhat of a rivalry over the past years, with Xu finishing behind Murphy in the 100 back in Rio before claiming gold over the American at the 2017 World Championships the next summer. Xu’s best long course time, which he swam at 2017 Chinese Nationals heading into Worlds, is just .01 off Murphy’s world record

You can check out Xu’s performance from this weekend below:

We were treated to something special by Xu Jiayu of China in the Men’s 100m Backstroke
? https://t.co/bEozhdW5qV #FINA #Swimming #SWC18 #Tokyo pic.twitter.com/Vgy3IMbXM7

— FINA (@fina1908) November 11, 2018

Congratulations Xu Jiayu on earning Swimming World’s Performance of the Week!

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