Asian Games 2023: Hong Kong’s Siobhan Haughey set for titanic tussle with China’s Zhang Yufei for 50m freestyle gold
- Zhang sets Asian Games record in morning heats to put pressure on Haughey’s bid for third gold
- Adam Mak raises hopes of Hong Kong medal in men’s 200m breaststroke after qualifying second fastest for final
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Siobhan Haughey will race for gold in the 50m freestyle on Thursday after easing through her heats, but will need to get the better of China’s Zhang Yufei in her bid for a third title.
The 25-year-old Hongkonger already has the 100m and 200m titles, and finished her qualifying swim in a respectable 24.95 seconds, only for Zhang to then set an Asian Games record in her heat.
Zhang, who has two gold medals of her own in the 100m and 200m butterfly, clocked a time of 24.50 seconds to chop 0.03 seconds off the previous best, set by Japan’s Rikako Ikee in Jakarta in 2018.
Hong Kong will have two swimmers in the medal race at the Hangzhou Olympic Sports Centre Aquatic Sports Arena, with Tam Hoi-lam also getting through qualifying. The final is scheduled for 7.30pm.
Tam, 25, clocked a time of 25.36 to finish just behind the hosts’ Cheng Yujie.
In other events, Chang Yujuan qualified as eighth overall in the women’s 200m breaststroke with a time of 2:33.32 seconds.
And Adam Mak Sai-ting posted a time of 2:12.40 in the men’s 200, breaststroke to reach tonight’s final as the second overall swimmer.
Compatriot Adam Chillingworth, who also swam in the first of three heats, was 1.17 seconds slower than Mak and qualified seventh overall.
The city’s men’s and women’s teams are also swimming for a medal. The men’s team - Cheuk Ming-ho, Ian Ho Yentou, Lau Ping-chi and Ng Cheuk-yin - finished their 4x100 metres freestyle relay in three minutes, and 23.35 seconds to claim the last spot in the final.
The women’s team, comprised of Ho Nam-wai, Chloe Cheng, Ng Lai-wa and Mok Sze-ki, reached the women’s 4x200 metres freestyle relay final with the third overall time of eight minutes, and 18.94 seconds.
