Olympic champion Wang claims 3rd straight men's 400m IM title at National Games

XI'AN, Sept. 19 (Xinhua) -- Olympic gold medalist Wang Shun of Zhejiang stood atop the podium in the men's 400m individual medley at China's 14th National Games here on Sunday, winning his third straight title in the event at the quadrennial tournament.

Wang, who had won gold over 200 meters at the Tokyo Olympic Games, led from the start in the butterfly and held his nerve to widen the gap in the final sprint with a time of 4 minutes and 12.76 seconds, improving his gold medal tally at the National Games to 10.

"I'm excited to win the 400m IM title for the third time," said 27-year-old Wang, who also expressed hopes of competing at the next National Games in 2025, which will be jointly hosted by Guangdong, Hong Kong and Macao.

Liu Zongyu of Shandong finished second in 4:14.66, with Tao Guannan of Guangdong taking the bronze medal in 4:17.13.

"The silver and bronze medalists also went all out. I'm really happy to see these young swimmers standing out," Wang added.