Rikako Ikee and Liu Xiang Set Up Epic Duel On Final Day Of Asian Games

Photo Courtesy: Peter H. Bick

The final preliminary session of the 2018 Asian Games was not a very fast one as a lot of swimmers have held back this morning in hopes of a lightning fast final session in Jakarta. Rikako Ikee and Liu Xiang will be battling for the gold in the 50 free which could settle female swimmer of the meet.

Yan Zibei set a Games Record in the 50 breast while Wang Jianjiahe took zero hard strokes in the 400 free heats. Chihiro Igarashi and Yui Ohashi put up the top times in their respective events.

Live Results

Women’s 50 Free

Two of the biggest names in Asian swimming will square off in the 50 free final with Rikako Ikee of Japan and Liu Xiang of China. Ikee has already won three individual gold medals along with two relay golds and two silvers. She is going for her eighth medal and her fourth individual win of the week.

Liu has only won one medal, but she broke a world record in winning the 50 back. This is just Liu’s second final of the meet and she will be challenging a tired Ikee, but it is only 50 meters so it should be anyone’s race.

China’s Wu Qingfeng (25.47) and Japan’s Mayuka Yamamoto (25.53) qualified behind them in third and fourth as it could be down to them to win the bronze medal.

Singapore’s Ting Quah (25.65), Amanda Lim (25.73), Korea’s Kim Minju (25.83) and Hong Kong’s Stephanie Au (26.04) also qualified for the final.

Rikako Ikee, JPN, 25.09
Liu Xiang, CHN, 25.14
Wu Qingfeng, CHN, 25.47
Mayuka Yamamoto, JPN, 25.53
Ting Quah, SGP, 25.65
Amanda Lim, SGP, 25.73
Kim Minju, KOR, 25.83
Stephanie Au, HKG, 26.04

Men’s 50 Breast

China’s Yan Zibei demolished the Games Record in the 50 breast heats with a 27.06 to lead the qualifiers on the last morning of the 2018 Asian Games in Jakarta. Yan, as well as four other swimmers, lowered Dmitriy Balandin’s record of 27.78 from 2014.

Yan is closing in on Koseki’s Asian Record of 26.94 from earlier this summer.

Japan’s Yasuhiro Koseki (27.28), Uzbekistan’s Vladislav Mustafin (27.41), China’s Sun Jiajun (27.48) and even Balandin himself finished under the old record. The final could be much faster as a lot of the swimmers this week have taken it easy in the preliminaries.

India’s Sandeep Sejwal (27.95) and Macau’s Chao Man Hou (27.97) will also swim in the final tonight.

The last finisher into the final was none other than 200 fly and 400 IM gold medalist Daiya Seto (27.97) who is swimming an unconventional 50 breast on the last day of the Asian Games. Seto is more known to compete in the 200 fly, 200 IM and 400 IM.

Yan Zibei, CHN, 27.06, Games Record
Yasuhiro Koseki, JPN, 27.28
Vladislav Mustafin, UZB, 27.41
Sun Jiajun, CHN, 27.48
Dmitriy Balandin, KAZ, 27.53
Sandeep Sejwal, IND, 27.95
Daiya Seto, JPN, 27.97
Chao Man Hou, MAC, 27.97

Women’s 400 Free

The women’s 400 free heats were rather sluggish as the two favorites Wang Jianjiahe (4:19.02) and Li Bingjie (4:20.53) from China qualified second and seventh respectively with lackluster times compared to what they are capable of. Li was a 4:03 last year at World Championships and Wang was out in a 4:09 in her 800.

Japan’s Chihiro Igarashi is the top seed going into the final with a 4:15.89. Waka Kobori is third at 4:19.62 as the bronze medal is expected to come down between one of those two swimmers.

The rest of the field is pretty tight with a bunch of 4:19’s and 4:20’s in the final. Hong Kong’s Ho Nam Wai (4:19.65), Singapore’s Chang Gin (4:19.70), Hong Kong’s Katii Tang (4:19.74) and Korea’s Kim Jinha (4:21.75) also qualified for the final.

Chihiro Igarashi, JPN, 4:15.89
Wang Jianjiahe, CHN, 4:19.02
Waka Kobori, JPN, 4:19.62
Ho Nam Wai, HKG, 4:19.65
Chang Gin, SGP, 4:19.70
Katii Tang, HKG, 4:19.74
Li Bingjie, CHN, 4:20.53
Kim Jinha, KOR, 4:21.75

Women’s 200 IM

It should be another fast final but the prelims were a little sluggish. It seems to be the theme tonight but a lot of swimmers are clearly holding back on this last preliminary session of the 2018 Asian Games. Japan’s Yui Ohashi (2:13.55), who won the silver medal at Worlds last summer in this event, is the top seed ahead of China’s Zhou Min (2:13.82).

Both Ohashi and Zhou are capable of going much quicker, as well as Korea’s Kim Seoyeong (2:16.73), who is the fifth seed. Kim was a 2:08 earlier in the summer and it might take under 2:10 to get on the podium. Ohashi was a 2:08.16 at Pan Pacs earlier this month.

Other medal contenders are Japan’s Miho Teramura (2:15.73) and China’s Yang Chang (2:16.45) as they are third and fourth.

Hong Kong’s Natalie Kan (2:17.90), Singapore’s Jamie Yeung (2:18.39) and Indonesia’s Ressa Dewi (2:18.69) also qualified for the final.

Yui Ohashi, JPN, 2:13.55
Zhou Min, CHN, 2:13.82
Miho Teramura, JPN, 2:15.73
Yang Chang, CHN, 2:16.45
Kim Seoyeong, KOR, 2:16.73
Natalie Kan, HKG, 2:17.90
Jamie Yeung, SGP, 2:18.39
Ressa Dewi, INA, 2:18.69

Men’s 4×100 Medley Relay

SPLITS

Japan and China set themselves up for another epic duo on the last night of the Asian Games for the men’s 4×100 medley relay final. Japan qualified first at 3:36.95 while China is second at 3:38.14.

Japan will be expected to have Ryosuke Irie, Yasuhiro Koseki, Yuki Kobori and Shinri Shioura as Koseki and Shioura won gold medals in their events. China will have a strong team with Xu Jiayu, Yan Zibei, Li Zhuhao and Yu Hexin expected to go for them.

The bronze will be up for grabs as Kazakstan (3:38.57) and Singapore (3:39.69) will be expected to battle for it. Singapore has gotten the bronze medal in each of the two men’s relays thus far thanks to the duo of Zheng Quah and Joseph Schooling. Kazakhstan superstar Dmitriy Balandin will be needing a monster breaststroke leg if they are to shoot for the bronze medal.

Japan, 3:36.95
China, 3:38.14
Kazakhstan, 3:38.57
Singapore, 3:39.69
Indonesia, 3:40.00
Korea, 3:41.85
Chinese Taipei, 3:43.96
Hong Kong, 3:44.16

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Tina Kemal

5 years ago

rikako ikee Congratulations!!! You’ve won 5 medals! and more more more #AsianGames2018