Baku, September 24, AZERTAC
Japan's Shin Ohashi set a world record of 2 minutes, 4.83 seconds to win gold in the men's 200-meter breaststroke at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games on Thursday, the Kyodo News reported.
The 17-year-old broke the previous world record of 2:05.48 set by China's Qin Haiyang in July 2023 and claimed his second gold medal of the meet after winning the 100-meter breaststroke.
"I'm really happy to have produced a good result with Japan hosting the games," the Osaka Prefecture native said.
At the Japan national championships in March, Ohashi clocked a personal-best 2:06.59 in the 200-meter breaststroke, the second-fastest time ever by a Japanese swimmer, and completed a sweep of the 50-, 100- and 200-meter titles.
However, Ohashi finished third in the 200-meter at the Pan Pacific Championships in August, his first major senior international meet.
"I didn't perform very well this summer and learned how difficult international competition can be. I'm truly grateful to everyone," he said.
His feat drew comparisons with Japanese breaststroke great Kosuke Kitajima, who won consecutive Olympic gold medals in both the 100-meter and 200-meter breaststroke in 2004 and 2008, after setting a then-world record at the 2002 Asian Games in Busan, South Korea, at the age of 20.
While most of the events at the Asian Games are being held in Nagoya and other cities in Aichi Prefecture, the swimming venue is located in Tokyo.
Kotomi Kato added another gold for Japan by winning the women's 200-meter breaststroke.