China wraps up Xi’an inventive swimming World Cup with 5 golds

XI’AN — China’s inventive swimmers closed out the 2026 World Aquatics Artistic Swimming World Cup in Xi’an with one gold, one silver and one bronze on Sunday, ending the meet with 5 golds, three silvers and one bronze throughout 11 occasions.

China’s teenage pair of Shi Haoyue and Cao Yixin clinched the blended duet free title with a rating of 224.8041 factors. Britain’s Ranjuo Tomblin and Isabelle Thorpe took silver, whereas Russian pair Vladimir Pershin and Arina Tumkina claimed bronze.

“We only started training together less than a month ago,” Shi instructed Xinhua. “We both felt pressure today, but we didn’t pass that anxiety on to each other. It’s great to see such a good result, and all of our difficult elements were counted.”

“They made a mistake in the mixed duet technical on Saturday,” famous their coach Shi Haoyu. “As athletes, they have to face ups and downs. Overcoming those difficulties is part of gaining experience.”

China entered each its senior and youth groups within the group acrobatic occasion. In the ultimate routine of the Xi’an leg, Russia topped the rostrum with 227.9089 factors. China’s senior squad took silver whereas the youth group earned bronze.

“I’m proud of the girls, first of all, and very grateful for their work,” mentioned Russia head coach Svetlana Romashina. “For us, the most important thing is to understand how to work with this team.”

It was China’s first defeat in group acrobatics at a global occasion since unveiling their “Souls of Terracotta Warriors” routine in June 2025. After the efficiency, group captain Chang Hao was in tears within the blended zone.

“We had some setbacks preparing for the Xi’an stop,” Chang mentioned. “Because of unexpected injuries, we had to keep adjusting our main lineup. It took us five months to refine and upgrade this routine. We increased the difficulty in the new version of ‘Souls of Terracotta Warriors’, but we still made a mistake today. I feel very sorry for the fans who supported us in the venue.”

Earlier on Sunday, Germany’s Klara Bleyer received the ladies’s solo free.

The subsequent leg of the 2026 World Aquatics Artistic Swimming World Cup might be held in Pontevedra, Spain, from May 29 to 31.