Singapore’s swimmers aim to improve personal bests as they gun for World Aquatics Championships

SINGAPORE: Top swimmers from Singapore are gunning for personal bests and to advance past a stacked field as they face global competition at the upcoming World Aquatics Championships on home ground.

The 22nd edition of the Championships will begin this Friday (Jul 11) and run till Aug 3. 

For some national swimmers like Chan Junhao, it will also mark the start of their push to qualify for the Los Angeles Olympics in 2028.

The United States-based athlete said he is confident of rising to the challenge as he prepares to make his World Aquatics Championships debut in Singapore.

The 21-year-old told CNA: “This is my first big meet and having it being at home is a really big deal for me. I'm excited to swim in front of my home crowd, and it's in front of my family and in front of my friends.”

Beyond the thrill of rubbing shoulders with the world's best swimmers, the current Singapore 50m breaststroke record holder added that competing with them is the first step in his long-term ambition.

"It's going to be a busy Olympic cycle. We have (the) SEA Games at the end of the year. We have (the) Commonwealth and Asian Games coming up next year. And more importantly for me, is the LA Olympics in 2028,” said Chan.

He added that he would be happy with achieving a personal best timing or being able to progress through the preliminary rounds of the meet.

“We're definitely ramping up our training a lot - a little bit more on the technical stuff, my coordination and also a good mix of strength and power, and being able to transfer that into the water,” he said.

Chan, who is currently a student athlete at the University of Southern California, is part of Singapore's 16-strong swim team and will race in the 50m, 100m and 200m breaststroke events.

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