{"id":621407,"date":"2025-08-23T08:40:16","date_gmt":"2025-08-23T15:40:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/?p=621407"},"modified":"2025-08-23T09:46:31","modified_gmt":"2025-08-23T16:46:31","slug":"world-junior-championships-day-5-finals-raito-numata-grabs-elusive-gold-in-400-im-yang-peiqi-triples","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/world-junior-championships-day-5-finals-raito-numata-grabs-elusive-gold-in-400-im-yang-peiqi-triples\/","title":{"rendered":"World Junior Championships, Day 5 Finals: Raito Numata Grabs Elusive Gold in 400 IM; Yang Peiqi Triples"},"content":{"rendered":"

World Junior Championships, Day 5 Finals: Raito Numata Grabs Elusive Gold in 400 IM; Yang Peiqi Triples<\/strong><\/p>\n

Only two championship sessions remain at the World Junior Championships, but they are loaded with anticipation. The Night Five finals on Saturday in Otopeni, Romania will be highlighted by the final of the men’s 400-meter individual medley, where Japan will look to make noise. World junior record holder Yumeki Kojima and Raito Numata, both 16-year-olds, are the future of the event for a country with a rich tradition in the 400 IM.<\/p>\n

The fastest heat of the women’s 1500 freestyle will open the session, with China’s Yang Peiqi in search of her third title of the competition. Yang has already captured gold medals in the 400 freestyle and 800 freestyle, in addition to helping China prevail in the 800 freestyle relay. Meanwhile, American Rylee Erisman will contest the semifinals of the 50 freestyle, where she was the sole sub-25 performer during prelims.<\/p>\n

Here is an event-by-event recap of the Night Five finals and semifinals:<\/p>\n