Nineteen-year-old Chinese artistic swimmer Xu Huiyan made history Saturday by securing China's first-ever women's solo technical gold medal at the World Aquatics Championships in Singapore. The rising star scored 272.9917 points to claim victory, building on her four-gold performance at last month's Artistic Swimming World Cup Super Final in Xi'an.
Xu's triumph came amid fierce competition from Belarus' Vasilina Khandoshka (260.5416) and Spain's Iris Tio Casas (260.2917), who took silver and bronze respectively. Earlier in the day, Xu helped China's team secure top position in the free preliminaries, advancing to Sunday's final as strong contenders.
In men's competition, Russia's Aleksandr Maltsev marked his solo debut with gold (251.7133), while China's Guo Muye narrowly missed the podium in fourth place. Maltsev, a pioneer in male artistic swimming, previously earned mixed duet silver at the 2015 World Championships when the discipline first included male competitors.
The results highlight Asia's growing influence in aquatic sports, with Chinese athletes demonstrating particular strength in technical disciplines. Xu's achievement positions her as a key figure to watch ahead of upcoming international competitions.
