SINGAPORE, July 23 (Xinhua) -- The Chinese swimming team, led by Paris Olympic 100m freestyle champion Pan Zhanle, arrived in Singapore on Wednesday for the World Aquatics Championships.
The swimming events will begin on Sunday, with four finals scheduled for the opening day. Pan, the team's star swimmer, will make his debut at the Singapore Worlds during the men's 4x100m freestyle relay.
"The flight was fine, and I'm not tired," he said shortly after arriving at the hotel.
"The weather is cooler than in Beijing," said Tokyo Olympic champion Zhang Yufei.
"I feel good now, but I'm a little bit hungry now," she said. Zhang will also compete in the opening day with the women's 100m butterfly.
The Chinese swimming team secured two golds, three silvers, and seven bronzes at the Paris Games last year, and remains highly competitive in the men's 100m freestyle, with Pan holding the world record at 46.40 seconds.
Also on Wednesday, China's artistic swimming pair, Guo Sitong and Guo Muye, finished in sixth place at the mixed duet final with a score of 216.5234 points.
Russian swimmers Aleksandr Maltsev and Mayya Gurbanberdieva, now competing as neutral athletes, won the gold medal with a score of 233.2100, while Spain and Italy claimed the silver and bronze respectively.
"We made some mistakes in our routine," said Guo Sitong. "It's our first World Championships, so we were very nervous."
"Compared to foreign male artistic swimmers, I need to improve both my upper body extension and my water position," said Guo Muye.
China has already won three gold medals in artistic swimming at Singapore Worlds. ■
