Chinese Yu Zidi is twelve years old, is allowed to start thanks to a special rule at the swimming World Cup, wins bronze and triggers a debate about a start-up feast at international championships. Other associations have long since reacted.
On Thursday, the upswing of the Chinese swimmer Yu Zidi experienced a preliminary climax-she won bronze with the 4×200 meter freestyle relay at the World Cup in Singapore. Yu Zidi was nominated for the final, but the precious metal receives every starter used in this format.
It is not unusual that a Chinese athlete conquers a medal in the 50-meter pool. But Yu Zidi from the eleven million-inhabitant metropolis of Boading in the province of Hebei is not an ordinary swimmer. Rather, she is still a child, just twelve years old and is actually not entitled to start at the current title fights in the Southeast Asian island and city state.
Participation from 14 years – except …
The rule that the World Aquatics Association prescribed the minimum age at the World Cup, Short Railway World Cup and Olympic Games is generally very clear. On page 81 it says under Section 14.2: Only who is or will be 14 years old in the year of the competition. But World Aquatics has inserted another sub -item: Younger participants can start if, like Yu Zidi, they meet the qualification standard. But that would mean that even younger children than the Chinese can take part in the World Cup if they are only fast enough.
This age limit was introduced for good reasons. Because in 2015 the World Cup in Kazan, Russia, the girl Alzain Tarq from Bahrain was released in the starting lists of the 50-meter Delphin and free part race and jumped into the water from the block. At that time, Alzain Tireq was ten years old. That shouldn’t be repeated. But Yu Zidin is twelve and therefore not exactly older than Alzain Tarq in 2015.
Yu Zidi amazed with strong performance
Chinese Yu Zidi already attracted special attention last Monday and Wednesday. On Monday, she missed the fourth of the bronze over 200 meters for just six hundredths of a second. Two days later she became fourth over 200 meters of dolphin. Gold won Canada’s swimming star Summer Mcintosh, 18, who conquered her first World Cup title with 15. Mcintosh 2021 started for the first time at 14 at the Olympic Games, still a children’s star. Franziska van Almsick was just 14 when she won two Olympic silver and bronze medals in Barcelona in 1992. But Yu Zidin’s story is blatant.
The Chinese news agency Xinhua reported about the habits of the girl Yu Zidin, she kept fit during the day, swimming ten kilometers in training and goes to school in the evening. Her nickname sound: “Xiaohaijie”, which means something like “the little big girl”.
Yu Zidi at the Schwim World Cup 2025 in Singapore
According to Xinhua, the little big girl find this name pleasant: “At the same time, the nickname puts me under pressure. I am afraid to cut off badly and disappoint people.”
This form of the pushed out performance, the pressure to shoulder the expectations of a billion dollar people, is frightened by a child. Stephan Wittky, the sprint and medium-range national coach says: “The age limit was not introduced for no reason. Unfortunately, performance -related exceptions undermine the attempt to enable child -friendly development.”
Children don’t just start in swimming
But swimming is not the only sport in which children can make a career. At the Tokyo Olympics, the 13-year-old Momiji Nishiya from Japan as well as Rayssa Leal Gold and Silver in skateboarding won in 2021. At the games a year ago, the Chinese Zheng Haohao was the youngest participant in this lifestyle sport: she was eleven and therefore another year younger than Yu Zidi.
Chinese Zheng Haohao takes part in the Olympic Games at the age of eleven
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) makes it easy with regard to a minimum age by delegating responsibility. As a rule, 42 of the Olympic Charter can be read on this topic: “For the participants in the Olympic Games, there must be no other age limit than those that are defined in the competitive rules of the international sports specialist associations that are approved by the IOC Executive Committee.”
Youth games no, Olympic Games yes?
In the Olympic Youth Games organized by the IOC, however, the rings group expresses much more clearly in relation to the conditions of participation. Only young people who are at least 15, but at most 18 years old, are allowed to start there. Nishiya and Leal would not be approved by the IOC for internal youth games, but were allowed to succeed at the big summer festival.
The rules of World Aquatics is just as bizarre. Only those swimmers who are at least 14 and at most 18 years old are approved for junior world championships that are at least 14 and at most 18 years old. Yu Zidin would not have received any approval in the title fights, which are reserved for talented offspring.
For the area of skateboarding, the World Association has now set the minimum age for participants in international championships to 14 years. The figure skating world association has also responded to the discussions about childlike jumping fleas and, before the Olympic Winter Games in Milan and Cortina d’Ampezzo, has been upgraded to 17 years. Previously, the participants had to be on July 1 of the current year 15.
Changes to the Age regulations When gymnastics
Doctors in particular had initiated an adaptation of the minimum age, justification: Before their puberty, girls were able to stand triple and even fourfold jumps, which they no longer dominated after a growth phase. This exploitation of children simply leads too far.
There is now also a minimum age for gymnasts in international competitions. The Romanian children’s star Nadia Comaneci became famous in this sport. In 1976 she won three Olympic gold medals in Montreal. There it was 14. Such a children’s gold program is no longer possible: in gymnastics and in rhythmic sports gymnastics, the entry age was now set to 16 among athletes and 18 in men.
The then 14-year-old Nadia Comaneci at the 1976 Olympic Games
Child protection apparently not on the agenda
In addition to Yu Zidi, there are other child peculiarities, especially when swimming. In 2012, the 15-year-old Lithuanian Ruta Meilutyte won gold over 100 meters of chest in London. At 15, Michael Phelps 2000 started his Olympic record career in Sydney, which ended with 23 titles 16 years later.
In view of the flood of examples within World Aquatics, ethical-moral concerns have not seemed to exist for decades. In any case, child protection does not seem to be on his agenda.
DSV sports director Hansemann: “Keep that to be much too early”
Christian Hansmann, the sports director of the German Swimming Association, said this day about the missions of Yu Zidi: “If you put a girl in front of a World Cup backdrop at the age of twelve, with 4,000, 5,000 spectators, the pressure of the media, the trainer who exposes high expectations, then I think that is far too early. You should use other competitions to prepare them mentally and physically.”
Christian Hansmann, sports director of the DSV
Xinhua also quoted Yu Zidi with these words: “I almost wanted to give up in front of the Chinese championships in April. At that time I had a lot of emotions and no desire to train.” But she had come to a realization: “I can’t give up swimming.” Yu Zidi starts again in Singapore on Sunday, over 400 meters.